


Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Wardens of the Kingdom

by Dark_Blooodclaw



Category: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-03
Updated: 2019-03-20
Packaged: 2019-10-21 08:37:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 29,586
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17639438
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dark_Blooodclaw/pseuds/Dark_Blooodclaw
Summary: An original PMD where exploration guilds can't always be trusted and sometimes you have to do questionable things in order to do the right thing. Skyla, a thief trying to start over learns this when her path crosses with a Warden, the Kingdom of Grassilla's elite Intelligence corpse. Standing by his side she's learning that doing what's best for the kingdom isn't always easy. SHe stole a strange and seemingly useless flute but the response of Avios, the country owning the flute seems highly disproportional for what should have been a minor theft at best. Instead of getting a new bounty, she's been relentlessly hunted by Exploration teams of the country.





	1. On the Run

Chapter 1: On the run

The sun was rising, cresting over the mountain range and casting a vibrant fiery splash of orange against the dull grey sky. The densely packed trees formed a sea of lush, deep emerald green in the slowly shrinking shadow of the trio of mountains. The soft, steady beat of wings broke through the morning silence. An orange and black shape flew along the air currents, the thick valley forest coming closer and closer with every passing second until the avian cut sharply to the side along the treeline searching for the campsite.

The canopy thinned out, just enough for the compact Fletchinder to dive in and weave between the branches, haste driving his movements, his sharp black gaze frantically searched the forest floor for the familiar clearing. His hurriedness paid off after a few minutes. He curved under the thick bough of the ancient trees and spotted the loosely formed path his fellow refugee had made through the brush. 

“Rye!” the bird hissed aloud as he turned down the path, right into the small clearing that had become him and his friend’s home for the past couple of hours. A small camp had been constructed there. The embers of the fire still smoldering when his Riolu companion had finally settled down to snatch some sleep while the Ember pokemon had been out trying to hunt some berries to replenishing their dwindling reserves.

“Rye! Get up! They're near here!” he shouted, his wings fluttering as he landed next to the passed out canine. The firebird glanced around quickly and saw that the Riolu wasn’t stirring. He was happily sprawled out on the dirt oblivious to the world around him.

“Come on!” The Fletchinder shouted in exasperation. He looked around the clearing, at their meager campsite, in their haste, the duo had missed grabbing most of their supplies, only a rucksack with minimal supplies that the Riolu had been able to grab. He eyed the dozing jackal before inhaling. His beak opening as a dull orange glow formed within his mouth.

Rye’s red gaze shot open, a brief but searing pain splashed against his chest, causing the fighting type to yelp. He scrambled to stand, wide bleary-eyed and confused as he frantically looked around for the source. He settled his gaze onto the Fletchinder, his triangular beak still parted with the orange glow emanating from within. Another Ember was prepared in case the first hadn’t awakened his fellow fugitive.

“Ryker! Why!?” Rye squeaked while rubbing at his singed fur before pausing. He waved his paw in front of his face trying to dispel the smell. “Why do you keep doing that?” he grunted glanced around the clearing, nothing had changed since he had fallen asleep.

“We gotta move now! They’re closing in on us,” Ryker said, his wings beating frantically against the air as he settled onto the dirt.

“You sure?” Rye asked tiredly, a low groaning escaping as he sighed. He grabbed the backpack and slung the single shoulder strap of the canvas bag over his shoulder before shaking his head slowly “You wouldn't say anything if you weren't, where at?” 

 

“North of here, maybe an hour if they cut through the thicker foliage, two or three if they follow the trails.” He said, raising a yellow wing tip in the general direction. “Saw them when I was searching for food.”

Rye sighed, nodding as he kicked dirt onto the smoldering embers of the old fire, he paused realizing he couldn't have closed his eyes for more than half an hour “And we just got settled too. Do you think they’re gonna keep chasing us?”

“I don’t know, maybe? Who knows how these criminals think?” The bird replied,“Maybe they’ll give up if we head deeper into Grassillia, toward the capital.”

“We’re getting further from the border with Helios though. Any smart one would have turned back by now, slavery’s illegal in this country,” Rye said while he shifted the bag, pushing the exposed bit of the map hanging out back inside.

“It is, and we’ve been running for awhile, maybe they're trying to wipe out any witnesses to the caravan attack?” Ryker speculated before he gave his head a shake. “We’ve wasted enough time standing around though,” He looked over his shoulder before hopping over to stand next to the Riolu “How far is the nearest settlement? Maybe a structured town will scare them off.”

“Let me look,” Rye said, pulling the map out he gently unrolled it and holding it up.There was a stray beam of sunlight that broke through the treetops. he held it up to the shaft of light and illuminated the sheet of paper. The map was simple, hand-drawn and old, revealing the surrounding areas between the mountains, the vast valley rested on the western edge of the Kingdom of Grassillia, bordered with Pyros to the west and Helios to the south-west. The canine pointed toward a few splotches of ink on the page and grimacing.

“Well?” Ryker’s voice cuts into his thought.

“Someone spilled ink ont-” Rye started to complain, but the Fletchinder’s beady eye twitched at his words, cutting him off.

 

“Focus! You can fix the damn thing when we don’t have psychos at our backs.” The bird said, the irritation in his tone showed. Rye shook his head and nodded “Right, sorry, looks like it’s a small village called Tree Peaks.”

“Tree Peaks?” Ryker asked in slight confusion, the name rung no bells to the flying type “Ya sure that's it?”

Rye gave the map a second peek, shaking his head “Three Peaks, sorry.”

Ryker’s head bobbed quickly as he nodded “We’ve gotta go then, following the trails, we’ve got maybe three hours before they get here, assuming they follow the same route we did.”

“We head off the beaten path then?” Rye asked, looking around, he realized it would be hard to cross through the heavy undergrowth without leaving distinctive evidence of their passing. His companion shook his head, gesturing with his beak toward the south. The trail picked up there, cutting behind a large boulder and out of view.

“We follow the path, as long as we can keep moving we’ll keep ahead of them,” Ryker responded, flexing his wings before fluttering into the air “But, we have to go now to maintain the lead.”

 

“Right,” Rye said, He briefly looked around the clearing, realizing that they had everything they needed already packed into the bag thanks to Ryker’s prudence. They’d be able to leave as quickly as they had settled, turning toward the trail, he gave a small nod. “Lead the way.” 

Ryker nodded, turning toward the trail, he sighed softly, expelling a few embers as he warmed himself up and with one final beat, he took off, his friend starting to jog in order to keep up as they tried to maintain their lead over the attackers.

-000-

Meanwhile, in another part of the same forest, a second group was paused, two pokemon stood on the trail. A third one, a Sandshrew, knelt down examining what looked like a cluster of pawprints that settled in the dust of the path.

“Looks like it could be hers.” The Ground-type commented, pulling himself up and turning to be face to face with the large, vibrant rainbow colored beak of the scowling Toucannon. His eyes widened as he felt the heat radiating from the flying-type’s beak pulsating mere inches from his muzzle.

“You’re not sure?” The Toucannon said quietly, the third figure, a Hawlucha placed his hand on his companion’s shoulder, pulling him away from the terrified Sandshrew’s face. 

“Give him a chance to explain Gen, you know this thief is skilled, she did make off with the Aerial Flute after all, which,” He paused, bringing a hand up and clenching his fist tightly, a scowl forming “Is the whole reason we’re out.”

Gen glowered at his partner's actions, before sucking in a breath and shooting their tracker another glare, his tone dripping with sarcasm “Yes Velo, Which is exactly why the impeccable talent shown by our highly skilled tracker is exasperating.”

“Just gimme a second aight? These evolutions got some similar pawprints. Could be her, or a passing Leafeon for all I know,” The ground type grunted, rubbing his chin as he crouched down, to get a better look.

 

“It’s ok Dale, we’ll deal with that if it’s the case, but can you lead us to the source of these tracks?” Valos questioned while glancing around, his avian companion shot silent daggers at their choice in a top-notch tracker.

“Looks like whoever it was headed along the trail,” Dale said with a self-satisfied grin, Gen’s beak opening, the soft glow of embers heating up visible before the mouse pokemon wisely added “North, maybe north-west, in a haste like they were in a hurry.”

The Toucannon’s beak closed with an audible snap and grunt as he turned in the direction indicated “Good, then we can catch this thief and get back into Avios in a matter of days.”

“I’m still getting paid for this, right?” Dale asked after a few moments, he had been hastily recruited to lead the recovery team after the fugitive once the bold theft of one of their country's most treasured relics had been discovered days earlier. Though, if his personal opinion had been asked, the thief had done them all a favor. The flute in question had sat on a pedestal gathering dust for only Arceus knew how long in the museum. It wasn’t his place though, bringing up questions like that also brought up attention, attention Dale had long discovered best left diverted onto those who cared about the limelight, not a simple bookshop keeper like himself.

“When we catch her, yes.” Valos replied, nodding toward his partner and then gesturing toward the path “Lead the way Dale, we’ll handle any trouble that crops up.”

“What about Exploration teams?” Dale said, pausing to grab his bag of supplies off of the forest floor.

“What about them?” Gen grunted, his dark blue eyes narrowing.

“Well, what if we bump into any of erm Grassillian ones?” the Sandshrew asked while adjusting the strap of his bag.

“We’ll talk to them and explain why we’re here,” Valos said with a shrug.

“So their guilds don’t even know a rival country’s team is in their borders?” Dale commented, rubbing his chin and shaking his head before sighing softly.

“No, and if our exceptionally skilled tracker could lead us to the thief any quicker, I’m sure the local teams will never even notice our presence.”

“Fine, fine, no need ta be such a Cacturne ’bout it,” Dale said quietly, crossing his arms before beckoning them along, he could feel the uptight bird’s glare burrowing into the back of his shell as they started off. He muttered, “I didn’t ask ta be dragged outta my warm bed and flown halfway across the country anyways.”

“I didn’t hear you complaining when the Guildmaster offered thrice your usual rate either.” Gen countered as he hopped along behind the Sandshrew. The Hawlucha brought his hand up to his face, rubbing his beak, giving up on trying to keep the two from bickering.

“I didn’t even know what ta word meant till he explained it either.”

“Means thrice the headache for a third of the work.” The Cannon Pokemon grumbled, his eyes shifting toward the ground. The paw print trail they were following was occasionally flanked on either side by small, random pairs of marks. “What’s this?” he said, gesturing toward the marks, causing Dale to raise an eyebrow in utter confusion.

The armadillo knelt down, he poked at the faint marks, they vaguely resemble a Y bit with a third prong in the center. Rubbing his chin, the tracker was utterly baffled by the oddity. “No clue, Don’t think it’s important though, her prints are getting heavier, she gotta be tiring out soon, we shouldn’t be too much farther from your quarry.”

“Good, I want out of this damn forest and back under open skies,” Gen said while looking up toward the thick tightly woven canopy of the forest, longing to see the vast expanse of blue surrendering him instead of this...unnatural closeness to the soil under his talons.

-000-

“You think the others from the caravan got away?”

Ryker froze when the question came out of nowhere. The duo had been traveling further south and south-east for the past hour, Rye’s panting revealing the canine pokemon’s exhaustion was starting to take its toll. He looked over his shoulder to the Riolu, before glancing around them. He spotted a break in the dense undergrowth and hopped toward it, before brushing the ferns aside with his wing “Come on, let’s rest here.” 

Rye didn’t argue with the Fletchinder, he followed through the ferns and dropped down onto the soft grass, he kept the bag on, in case they ended up having to leave quickly once more. After Ryker settled down he repeated his question.

Ryker looked toward the nearby trees and then the grass, before turning toward Rye, A grimace formed on his face as he gave his head a shake “I don’t know Rye, I wanna say yes, but you saw how overwhelming their forces were, it’s like they were waiting for us.”

“Yea…..you don’t think one of the other guards...betrayed us do you?” Rye asked, swallowing nervously, he didn’t want to believe it but it seemed likely. The pay that had been offered had been pretty good, and the caravan owner, a Simisage merchant had given each group that accepted half of their promised payment up front. Which for him and Ryker had been two hundred and fifty gold coins, more than they would have made in months of doing any similar work?

“Considering it’s mostly a lawless country where backstabbing is done for profit is far more often than an honest day's work, it’s likely,” Ryker responded his head turning toward the ferns. He saw the look on his friend’s face, he wanted to say something, anything that could give the Riolu some peace of mind, but it had been a rather grim situation. 

“If anything, I’m sure that Blastoise and Grovyle survived, they seemed like seasoned veterans,” Rye said after a few moments.

Ryker bobbed his head in silent agreement, out of all the guards, those two did seem to have the most experience. There was a small twinge of regret, he had done little to socialize with the other guards during the three-day trip. The two’s focus had been solely on completing the job and getting the coin so that they’d have some funds when they did eventually enter Grassillia. Entering like this, on the run with what seemed like an entire score of murders and cutthroats breathing down their necks hadn’t been foreseen by either of them.

“You hungry? We’ve got some berries left.” The fighting type said, digging through the bag before sighing, he pulled out two apples that were fairly bruised, battered and starting to brown. “We’ll need to get more soon,” he commented, doing a quick check on the rest of their dwindling food supply. Only a couple of wrinkling Oran berries and a single Pecha berry remained in their stash.

“Yea might as well enjoy them while we can,” Ryker commented, hopping the short distance between the two of them and grasping the offered fruit with his talons. He pecked at it to tear a chunk off. The moment the bitter fruit touched his tongue, the bird’s eyes screwed up. The taste was bitter and sour, it spread across his taste buds like a wildfire, causing him to gag and spit it out.

“Er…..guess it looked better than it tasted?’ Rye said hesitantly looking down at his own apple, before sitting it to the side “Maybe after we find fresher.”

 

“Yea,” Ryker said hoarsely after shaking his head vigorously, trying to get rid of the taste. Once it was gone, he scowled, eying the jackal pokemon “We’re gonna get out of this Rye, They won’t find us this deep in.”

Rye nodded, grinning in turn before biting into the bitter tasting apple and pausing to shudder. “Blah, it’s bad but...oh well,” he said, bracing himself before going to finish his brief meal. Once he was done, he leaned back, pressing his paws into the dirt behind him and reclining “Where are we going to go after we get away from these slavers?”

“I was thinking the capital, Kios, the Exploration Guild is based there, A good line of work for us,” Ryker replied. Glancing back toward the path that sat mere feet away, behind a veil of ferns, their only real cover. “We should head on, Don’t want to give them any more time to catch up then we have to.”

Rye nodded, reluctant to leave the soft grass but he knew Ryker was right. The longer they stayed in place, the more they risked being found. Unfortunately, they hadn’t realized that it was already too late. Once he stepped onto the trail, Rye ducked frantically, his split-second reaction to the towering column of fire that spewed overhead, Ryker’s startled squawk filling the air.

Rye turned quickly, watching as Ryker fell to the floor, more out of shock than anything else. He landed with a soft thump on the grass. The Riolu grabbed his friend’s leg unceremoniously and dragged him behind a nearby rock before closing his eyes, trying to listen and feel. He could sense the aura of at least two attackers nearby

“We know you’re in there thief!” A voice shouted, gruff, impatient and irritable.

“Just come out and give up and things will go easy on you,” The second said the tone sounded far more reasonable than the first.

He didn’t get it, thieves? How in Arceus's name did being accused of theft come into the mix? Had one of the other guards decided to accuse them in order to get their share of the payment. It seemed likely and smelled exactly like Heliosian politics.

Ryker groaned softly. His head shaking as he came out of his daze. “What's going on?” he hissed, pulling himself to his feet, crouching down next to Rye, catching some of the rather bizarre sounding dialogue.

“Wait, I don’t think that’s an Umbreon’s track….” A third voice cuts into the mix. A very audible angry squeak was heard, followed by a resounding smack and squeak.

“Thick headed incompetent imbecile!”

There was another loud smack followed by protests.

“Hey now! No need ta get violent!”

“Enough you two!” the second voice cut in, Slowly Ryker peered around the rock’s edge. The sight before him would have caused him to laugh had he not been so confused. A Hawlucha stood between a very irate Toucannon, his beak was drawn back, and a cowering Sandshrew who carried a look of absolute terror on his face. It started to become evident that this trio wasn’t slavers.

“Er…..” Rye said, speechless as he slowly rose up to watch the spectacle as well. “Should we leave?” he asked, baffled.

As soon as the words left his lips, the trio happened to look their way, each making eye contact and straightening themselves up. The Hawlucha stepped forward, A grimace twisting the corners of his beak.

“Apologies for attacking you two, we had you mixed up with someone else.” He said, before getting cut off by Gen.

“One of us is sadly unable to determine the difference between Arceus’s own footprint and a Diglett's.” the tropical bird grunts, shooting the mouse pokemon a steady glare.

“Hey now!” Dale said in his own defense “Digletts don’t got footprints.”

“Exactly.” Gen grunts, Velos groaned softly, bringing his hand up to his face.

“Enough you two.” He said, turning his attention back to the duo, both of whom’s eyebrows were raised in disbelief at what they were hearing. “Again, I’m sorry that we attacked you, have either of you seen an Umbreon fleeing past her? She’s a dangerous fugitive that we’ve been dispatched to catch.”

“No,” Rye said, giving his head a shake, adjusting the strap on the backpack, so they were explorers then, that was a relief, at least with that team around, as strange as they were, they stood a better chance should they encounter the slavers.

“Unfortunately no, but we were actually hoping to bump into one of your teams, there are slavers in the area.” Ryker said, glancing around wearily “We were hoping to seek refuge in Kios.”

“Kios, this country's capital?” The Hawlucha said, unsure, he had done little to learn about the countries surrounding his own. “We’re Aviosian, I’m Velos, the glaring one is Gen and our tracker here is Dale.”

“Yep,” Dale said, grinning as he gave a small wave, Gen glared, as usual.

“Avios? That’s on the ot-” Ryker got cut off as a massive ball of fire spewed from between the nearby trees. 

“Oh come on!” Rye yelled as the five turned around. The heavy rhythmic beating of wings filled the air. Looking up, the Riolu spotted a gap in the trees, quickly filled by the dull glimmer of orange scales. The Charizard, battle-scarred and scowling landed with a heavy thud. A Bisharp and Grovyle quickly appeared from between the flying type’s wings.

“That’s the last of them.” The grass type said, gesturing toward Rye and Ryker “They were with the other caravan guards.”

“It was you!!” Rye said, pointing an accusing digit at the former guard “You caused all of this.”

“Yea.” The Grovyle said, giving a shrug of indifference “Coin’s too good to let urchins like you get it, and far too easy picking to pass up on.”

“Catch them and kill the ground type.” The Charizard said, he opened his mouth, smoke rising from his curled lips as the group took a step back.

“Come on now, there’s no need for that.” The Sandshrew said, taking an extra step back before pausing. There was heat licking at his back, creaking and crackling as the ancient tree that was in the field of fire from the first blast had hit ignited. He looked over his shoulder, the moss-laden tree had ignited with ease, the deadly crimson and orange flames were starting to spread from tree to tree.

“RUN!” Someone shouted, the Sandshrew wasn’t sure what was going on now, a paw grabbed his shoulder, shoving him into the nearby brush. Someone screamed, there were flames everywhere, the heat and smoke rising as the sound of combat started.

It was the Riolu, he realized, getting a good look at the blue fur before being forced to blink the stinging smoke away. “Come on!” the canine said, waving a paw toward him. The ground type didn’t need any more prompting. He nodded, following after the Riolu, catching sight of the Fletchinder’s black and white tipped tail feathers as he disappeared into the smoke.


	2. The Other side of the mountain

Chapter 2: Another side of the mountain

A serene, almost dreamlike silence started to settle on the mountainside forest, the soft chatter of distant Bug-types filled the background with a murmuring symphony that could fill even the most restless pokemon with a sense of peace. Unfortunately, it had little effect on the onyx shadow that happened to be dashing through the ferns. It began as a gentle rustling at first, that grew in volume as the source grew closer.

The trees here were larger, more closely clustered together, with their ancient boughs laden heavy with the weight of their age. Sunlight barely managed to filter through any part of the dense leafy ceiling, casting the trunks in an almost perpetual night time. This was exactly why the fleeing shape had chosen this part to make her escape in.

The slender figure leaped over a fallen tree, landing soundlessly beside the next trunk. A soft breath of exertion escaped, the only evidence that the figure wasn’t a personified shadow that came to life. Golden eyes looked behind her, faint, luminous blue rings glowed dully as long ears perked upward, trying to detect any evidence of her pursuers.

“Come on Skyla, we’ve been evading them for days, if they made it this far…” the Umbreon paused, giving her head a shake, she couldn’t let negative thoughts stop her now, she had managed to flee another country, with one of their treasures no less and across the border and far into the mountains of another, neighboring kingdom .

The treasure rested in the simple leather bag slung over her left side, secured to her body by a special harness made of the same material. It was old and worn, but it had seen the explorer through many trials and had held on this long and Skyla hadn’t wanted to replace it.

“Gotta be a town nearby somewhere, someone’s gonna wanna buy this.”She said, though truthfully, the female wasn’t even sure what it was that she had gotten or what it’s value was. She had been visiting the neighboring flying type country of Avios when she had chanced upon the relic sitting on a pedestal in the middle of a museum, no plaque or letter, nothing that gave any indication to its value. The only clue that she had that it was worth anything was Avios’s response with the latest team that had been sent to capture the thief.

This team was particularly determined to see to her arrested and to recover the object. She had been traveling for days now, through the mountain passes and across the border into Grassilia, the primary grass type country. It was one of the largest kingdoms on the continent, which had played into why she had chosen it in her hurried and frantic escape after an impulsive act.

She couldn't keep running forever though, eventually she'd make a mistake and slip up. The Umbreon hadn’t made it this far in her line of work by being too careless. Though, her line of work was fraught with dangers of its own. Thieves had a habit of disappearing just like the objects they stole. It was why the Umbreon had dubbed herself a collector and raider of lost artifacts, it sounded a lot better on paper even though it was essentially the same thing.

Spotting a clearing up ahead, Skyla quickly made her way toward it. She paused, gasping softly in awe. The clearing happened to be on the edge of the mountain. Nothing more than a rocky outcrop really, but it was the view she stood in wonder of. A massive ocean of green laid down before her, following the mountain down into the foothills. Two other peaks stretched out around her, dwarfing the one she happened to be on.

Skyla paused, a stray breeze caught her attention, a scowl forming as she recognized the scent on the air. Smoke, woodsmoke like a campfire, but way up here? Her first thought was the teams that had been sent to catch her. Was it possible that they were settled down for the evening? Opportunistic as always, the idea to press on into the night crossed her mind. It seemed too good to be true, as she looked northward, she realized that it was. She gulped in shock, smoke was rising from the valley below. It was growing by the second.

A forest fire didn’t make any sense though, they were in the springtime, and the heat here wasn’t bad enough for a natural fire to have started. Grassillia especially was known for its wet seasons, so it had to be something else. A civilian pokemon maybe? But why would one have started a fire like this, way out here where it’d spread uncontrollably.

Unfortunately, Skyla didn’t have long to debate about the origins of the fire. A twig snapped behind her, the fur along the back of the dark types neck rose as she ducked down, her senses sharpened to things trying to kill her saved her as she couldn’t have been quicker, the soft hum of something whistling through the air flew overhead. Following the object, Skyla realized that it had been a poorly aimed Shadow Ball.

“A bit much don’t ya think?” she squeaked, turned around, a frown on her face that quickly turned into a fearful wide-eyed grimace as she caught sight of her attacker. Before her stood a figure, small and feline like in shape. Dark blue fur made up the majority of its body, compact, white ears and fluff completed the vibrant blue. The Meowstic said nothing in turn, instead, he raised his hands, causing a faint blue glow to surround him as a strange mist emitted from them.

The cloud grew slowly around the two like a smokescreen. Skyla groaned softly to herself, recognizing the move, She’s had very bad encounters with pokemon who have used Misty Terrain against her before. Looking behind herself, Skyla took a step to the side, trying to figure out how far she was from the precarious edge now.

“What do you want?” She called out, her rings putting her at a disadvantage with their faint blue glow emitting softly against the mist like a dying candle. The Meowstic said nothing, his shape becoming nothing more than a shimmering distorted silhouette against the foggy air before vanishing completely from her sight.

A yelp escaped the Umbreon as she stumbled to the side, the Psychic-type reappeared, moving rapidly past her before pausing and turning to face her. She caught sight of his eyes glowing, dark purple energy flowing around him, giving the silent figure a much more sinister vestige. The energy collected into long flowing tendrils, pulsating and glowing with power. Each one slowly rounded out into a sphere. Suddenly the first orb shot off toward the female.

 

Skyla closed her eyes, the Psychic sphere hit her fur, doing no damage, in fact, it felt more like a harmless splash of water. Slowly, she opened her eyes, she was unharmed. The Meowstic’s eyes shifted, scowling now as the second sphere flew toward her. It simply dissolved on impact as well. After a moment of confusion, Skyla figured it out. She laughed, and stuck her tongue out “Dark type!’ she shouted before realizing something else.

If the figure kept using Psychic-type attacks, then maybe that was apart of his own type. Even she knew that Dark-types very strong against Psychic types and that meant she held an advantage. The Meowstic figured this out as well as the third sphere simply vanished into the air. He landed with a soft thump and raised a paw. Tendrils of shadows appeared around his raised hand beginning to collect into a ball.

“Shit,” Skyla muttered to herself, she braced herself, preparing to leap to the side to avoid the shadow ball. She froze though, unsure how close she was to the edge, her visibility cut down by the misty veil. Her assailant used the brief lapse in her attention to send the Shadow Ball hurling toward the Umbreon.

Squeaking in surprise, Skyla jumped back, the ball exploded on contact, colliding with her right in the chest and sending her flying backward a couple of feet. Scrambling to stand she quickly regained her senses and scowled.

“What do you want?” She shouted as the figure slowly started to dissolve back into the mist. There was a faint blue glow, distorted by the fog, that seemed to grow brighter and brighter coming from behind the Meowstic. She got no answer and had no intention of sticking around to find out. Fumbling for her bag, the thief had gotten a flash of brilliance and decided to act on it with very little thought.

Having learned long ago about the importance of being prepared, Skyla had swiped a couple of orbs from one of the guilds in Avios before the theft of the flute had been discovered. That heist had gone over with barely a hitch and had landed her a couple of rare orbs on top of another bounty. One of those orbs was exactly what she fished around for. Feeling something smooth touch her paw, she whooped in triumph. Grasping the orb and without wasting a second, Skyla slammed it down onto the ground.

There was a flash of light and an unseen force pushed outward, knocking away the mist and leaving the clearing sunny once more. Skyla’s eyes widened, she had turned and gasped in surprise the Meowstic had been standing mere feet behind her. He stood there, eyes widened slightly in surprise now that his cover was blown. That wasn't what had caused her gasp, that had been the figure that was standing less than a foot behind her attacker.

A Dewott stood there, his scalchop raised, eyes narrowed, seemingly unphased by the sudden change in the weather. The Meowstic never had a chance to turn around before the otter’s weapon slammed down against the back of the feline’s head. He fell with a soft thump onto the grass.

“You ok?” The Dewott asked, sheathing the shells onto his sides and crossing his arms, his black gaze staying on the limp form that rested at his feet.

“Me?” Skyla asked after a moment, raising a paw and pointing it at herself.

“Yes.” the Water-type said before kneeling down and grabbing something that was connected to the unconscious psychic type. It was a bag Skyla noted, she hadn't even realized that he had been wearing one during their brief encounter.

“I er..yea,” Skyla said after a couple of moments. She settled down onto her haunches, her golden gaze flicking out over the cliff, where the smoke had grown. Ominous black tendrils started to rise up past the mountain peaks before dissolving into the air.

“You know anything about that fire?” The Dewott asked, stepping toward the edge of the cliff, he had dragged their unconscious guest with him and had proceeded to grasp him by the scruff of his neck and hold him out over the edge as he spoke.

Skyla started to speak, she turned, yelping in surprise when she saw that the water type appeared to be about to just push the cat right off. “What are you doing?” she almost shouted, before she swallowed quickly and took a step back, preparing herself to run in case he decided she needed to die as well.

The Dewott didn’t turn to look at her, His tone was low, emotionless. “Working.” Was all he said before inhaling and spewing a jet of water into the Meowstic’s face. Light blue eyes shot open, the Psychic-type limbs flaring as he coughed and sputtered, quickly silenced by the Dewott’s glare.

“Now that you’re awake,” he said, giving the figure a shake and roughly twisting the Meowstic’s head so that he had a great view of the spreading cloud of smoke. “Do you know anything about that fire, is it your cohorts doing?”

Instead of responding with words, the Meowstic hissed, his eyes started to glow but the Dewott raised a scalchop with his free hand, the bluish blade of energy glowed and he leveled it with the figure’s throat. “I wouldn’t if I was you, Slavery is punishable by death in this kingdom and I can save the Wardens quite a lot of paperwork if I just send you over the edge now.”

Skyla watched silently, her jaw hanging open as she watched the Meowstic considering his words. The Dewott’s calm demeanor unnerved her more than anything. The glow around the Meowstic’s eyes settled as he gulped, feeling the prick against his vulnerable throat. He nodded slowly in response. Now that he was more compliant, the Dewott repeated his question.

“There are others out there hunting.” He said, swallowing, unable to read the Dewott’s almost statue-like facial expressions. “That’s all I know,” he repeated, His loyalty to the overseers and their trade evident as he feared their wraith over a quick death here.

“Slavery is illegal.” The Dewott repeated, his grip on the Constraint Pokemon’s neck loosening as he started to lean forward, letting the figure dangle precariously close to the precipice

“No! Wait, please! There’s more” The Meowstic pleaded after a moment. He realized something else, in typical Heliosian fashion, there was a lot more to be gained now then if he just died a quiet but painful death over the mountain’s edge. He felt the Dewott’s grip loosen on his tenuous hold. “There was a caravan! One of the guards tipped us off to it!”

“What was the guard?” The Warden asked, his gaze narrowing slightly in suspicion.

“A Grovyle!” The Meowstic said, his limbs flailing as he tried desperately to keep his balance.

“Now, was that so hard?” The Dewott asked, he started to pull back on the Meowstic, but the feline panicked, his ears unfurling, the glow of psychic energy was blinding, causing the water type to let go as an enormous blast of energy enveloped them all.

Skyla yelped in pain, the ground vanished out from below her as she got knocked through the air, hitting a tree side first, she fell down into the bushes with a groan. The wind knocked from her on impact, she gasped, struggling to breathe as she pulled herself to her paws. Standing on shaky legs, she looked around.

It looked like an explosion had gone off now. The old, bent and gnarled trees that had stood on the edge of the cliff were gone, freshly upturned dirt was the only evidence now that they had even stood there, to begin with. She looked around, spotting the Dewott pulling himself up out of the bushes he had been slammed into.

“Sorry, you witnessed that.” The Dewott said, before turning and looking over his shoulder, eying the rising smoke. “Had he not taken up that type of work, he wouldn’t have had to pay so dearly, but slavers care for no one but themselves, he’s hurt before and attacked you without hesitation, understand?”

Gulping quietly, Skyla nodded, realizing that the figure didn’t seem to be in a mood to throw her over the edge as well. What could she do now? Slowly, she looked between herself and the figure, nodding slowly. “I understand,” she said, trying to turn her attention from the cliff’s edge, the image of the Meowstic’s body falling down, to be broken on the jagged rocks was conjured up by her mind. She froze, closing her eyes before blurting out “Why did you help me?”

The Dewott paused, he thought it over for a moment, he turned, looking the shiny Umbreon over once before speaking“Because, it’s my job for one, and two, I wasn’t about to let a slaver get ahold of you, there have been reports of them becoming more active and brazen in raids from Helios.”

The name was vaguely familiar to the Umbreon, she paused, recalling many of her clients had come out of that region of barren deserts and lawless bandits. “Oh…” She said, cocking her head slightly “Your job? You an explorer?” she asked, hesitant as she shifted a bit so that her body rested between him and her bag. The treasure inside suddenly feeling heavier than it should have been feeling.

“Those glorified fetchers of lost berries?” He asked, before shaking his head “No, I’m with the King’s intelligence force, the Wardens, our tasks dwarf those Explorers, they get to return to a warm bed most nights, we’re lucky to get to see the sun rise over the forests surrounding Kios at all once we set out on a mission.”

“I’ve…..never heard of them,” Skyla said, grimacing as she looked around nervously, she didn’t want to offend the Dewott. Most people she’s met who were apart of anything, exploration guilds included, tended to be very proud and annoyed when they weren’t even known to those that they supposedly protected.

The amusement on the Dewott’s face said it all. “Then we’re doing our jobs.” He said before shifting his grip on the bag and looking out at the slow-growing blaze. “Ya want to earn some extra coin?”

Skyla’s ears twitched, she blinked in confusion, looking back at the water type, wearily she asked “Doing what?’ because if it didn’t have too high of a risk of death, then she saw no issue in why she couldn’t at least consider it.

“There are other slavers out there, Our companion mentioned a caravan guard turning traitor, I could use some help in tracking him down and making sure who’s after the guards don't catch them.” The Dewott said, he paused before adding an afterthought “Name’s Swift.”

She blinked slowly, things were definitely turning out a lot better then she could have hoped for. Not only had she managed to lose the crazies that were trying to catch her, but now, she seemed to have a new ally in case they manage to find her once more. Grinning, she flashed her slender fangs “Skyla, liberator of treasurers and professional relic raider at your service.”

“Hmm, Skyla, a pleasure.” Swift said, rubbing his chin “Just make sure none of Grassillia’s relics ends up in your bag and we’ll get along.” he said, unaware of close to home his comment hit, he raised an eyebrow as Skyla scooted over just a bit.

“Yeaaaa.” the Dark type said, “I’d never think to do something like that!” She chirped, under her breath, she quietly added the word “again.”

“What was that last part?’ Swift asked, slightly confused, having missed her mumbling.

“Nothing! count me in, don’t got anything else going on now that no ones trying to kill me.”

“Oh really now?” Swift questioned, seemingly surprised “Do tell me what that feels like.” he said, glancing toward the mountain path. “We need to head off, you know how to sneak?”

Skyla opened her mouth to respond, but a deep growl emitted from behind the duo, causing her to shut up. Slowly, the Umbreon looked over her shoulder, a groan escaped when she noticed the large Mightyena crouched down a couple of yards away, it’s fangs showing.

“Well, I guess I am a bit occupied now.” She said, turning her gold gaze toward Swift as she turned around, taking a step back away from the canine. “You’re used to people trying to kill you, what do we do!?”

“We run or fight.” The Dewott replied, his paws reaching down for his scalchops.

“You’re not worth the hassle of trying to sell.” The Mightyena said, his deep voice revealing him to be male. He drew his lips back, electricity crackled around his ivory teeth as he lunged forward kicking up loose tufts of grass as he charged toward the pair.

“Another slaver then,” Swift said with a scowl, dislike obvious in his voice as he drew the scalchops, the blue energy of the Razor Shells enveloped the shells as he rushed forward to meet the Dark type head on.

Sparks flew from the Mightyena’s maw as Swift slashed with his left shell, giving the canine a literal mouthful as the two attacks collided. The slaver snarled maliciously in turn, sinking his fangs down into the shell, fighting back the pain caused by the blow as he fought back in defiance.

Skyla watched from her spot, frozen in place by fear as the two went at each other. Swift raised his other shell, slamming it against the Mightyena’s forelegs in a low arching sweep. The movement caused the attacker to yelp in pain, he pulled his snout back, getting free of the first attack. His brief lapse in attention was exactly what Swift had wanted. The Dewott didn’t let up in applying the pressure. He pressed forward with his shells moving in a delicate and deadly flow of slashes and jabs that came with his years of practice and constant training.

The Mightyena quickly retreated backward, scrambling out of the Dewott’s way, but not unscathed, a few well-placed strikes had him moving with a limp from where Swift’s onslaught had struck his right foreleg right against the joint. Pain jolted through the limb with every step, causing the canine to hobble.

His anger grew as Swift paused, almost tauntingly as he waited for the canine’s retaliation. The energy gathered and shortly after a Dark Pulse fired from his mouth as he snarled. The Dewott ducked to the side, rolling out of the way to avoid the blast while the trees behind him hadn't fared so well. They creaked and shook from the force of the impact.

Growling in frustration, The Mightyena took a step back, yelping in surprise when his hind leg stumbled, knocking pebbles lose as he stood on the edge of the clearing. Exactly where Swift had tried to move him to with the flurries of attacks. His weight fell forward, his injured foreleg buckling under his weight, dark grey and black fur hit the floor of the clearing as he collapsed to the ground.

Skyla gasped softly, she started to stand, the thought to help the canine at the forefront of her mind until Swift positioned himself in front of her. He gave a shake of his head and pointed. The Dark type was down, but he wasn’t falling, or in imminent danger of going over the cliff’s edge as his partner had.

“Leave him, We’ve got more important things to handle.” The Dewott said, his breathing coming in deep slow breaths as he turned his back on the injured slaver. “If he goes over it’s his own fault.” He said coldly.

The Umbreon’s mouth was opened partially, she looked between the otter and the downed canine, she wanted to protest but it made sense, the Mightyena had seemed to have had every intention to kill them both. Reluctantly, she turned folding her ears back against the low groan and following the Warden as he moved back onto the path.

The Mightyena groaned weakly, slowly he started to pull himself to his paws. Hatred filled the canine’s amber gaze as he watched the duo’s retreating form. Pressing a hindleg against the loose soil, he realized that he still had a buffer between himself and the deadly ledge. Bracing himself with his three good legs, he opened his mouth, after a few moments, a bright, powerful Hyper Beam shot from between his lips. The column of energy flew through the air, slamming into the retreating pokemon. A pain filled yelp was the last thing the Mightyena heard before he fell forward once more, exhaustion took its toll and sent him into unconsciousness. A satisfied smirk resting on the Slaver’s muzzle.

Well, that’s the end of another chapter, one that I found fun to write, please read and review and leave a comment if you’d like to. I do enjoy hearing people's thoughts on it.


	3. The River's Edge

Chapter 3: The River’s Edge

 

“This way!” Rye shouted, briefly looking over his shoulder, the Sandshrew was still following close behind him, waddling as quickly as his short legs would allow him. So was the spreading, deadly reach of the fire as more and more lichen-covered trees of the deep forest sparked and ignited. The roar of the blaze shattered the once calm peace that had been settled over the untouched region for years. Looking forward once more, the Riolu blinked the tears out of his eyes. The smoke rose all around them, mere inches above the jackal's head.

“Ryker?” He shouted, grateful for his friend’s affinity for fire, it allowed him some immunity to the heat and death that was following along the trail behind the fleeing trio. 

“Keep heading straight!” The Fletchinder shouted as he dipped down, reappearing through the heavy black smoke, his wings beating frantically. Using his immunity wisely, he kept a constant vigil over their progress, the smoke and flames only enhancing him, he fought the almost overwhelming desire to dance between the blazing trees, the comforting heat that radiated off the fire only incensed him to want to fly quicker.

“How’s it’s looking?” Rye yelled, pausing for a moment, he glanced behind him. Dale had surprised himself with how well he was able to keep up with the two, though his breath came in quick, ragged gasps. The brief respite only lasted seconds as the fire was creeping dangerously closer, mere yards behind them now. The undergrowth burned, the radiating wall of heat was becoming unbearable for the Riolu. Sweat drenched his fur, his lungs burned from the acrid smoke. The momentary pause allowed him to realize just how sore he was, muscles screamed in protest, but they couldn’t stop now, they’d have to keep moving, and quickly if they wanted any chance of escaping the fire alive before it consumes them both.

Picking up the pace, with flames licking at their heels, the ground and fighting type rushed down the long winding path. Ryker fluttered down through the smoke, his beady black gaze blinking. Immune to the more devastating effects of the fire, the heavy smoke still posed an obscuring view of the world.

“Bad, really bad,” he said, beating his wings and gliding down low to the ground behind his companions. “We have to find a river or something if we want to survive this, there’s nowhere we can get out of the valley before all of it goes up in flames.

“Any nearby?” Rye yelled as he skidded to a stop, the path turns sharply to the left, almost parallel to the creeping blaze.

“Through the undergrowth!” Dale shouted the small compact figure waved a stubby paw, beckoning the two over. If they tried to follow the trail now, it’d become engulfed in a matter of minutes. The Riolu nodded quickly and joined the armadillo. Here the two quickly moved through the briars. Rye grimaced as the sharp thorns dug into his fur, but next to the crimson storm that was at their backs, there was little he had to complain about. The adrenaline pumped through his veins, pushing him on further and further through the exhaustion that was creeping at the edge of his vision.

Meanwhile, Ryker had taken to the skies once more as the trees thinned out. His head tilted this way and that was as he frantically looked around. A sudden flash of light erupted from further up the mountainside. This drew his attention for a moment before a second flash emitted from the same outcrop above. The trees around the protruding rocks shook, as if from some kind of shockwave.

Looking close to the mountain turned out to be far more beneficial than Ryker had realized. There, near the base, just below the odd outcrop, he could see a series of waterfalls cascading down over the mountain’s edge. Sanctuary! he shrieked in celebration and curved downward, cutting through the thinning trees.

“Follow me!” he shouted toward the fleeing ground bound duo. “There’s a series of falls to the north of here,” he said, his wings fluttering as he realized that the two had stopped. Coming closer, dipping below the smoke, he realized why. There was a small river before the two and they were arguing on its fast flowing banks.

“I can’t go in that!” Dale said as the Sandshrew shook his head quickly as he spoke, eying the water wearily.

“It’s this or burning alive!” Rye retorted, the bruised and battered Riolu’s patients coming close to the breaking point.

“Guys! There’s a waterfall past here.” Ryker chirped, fluttering his wings as he hovered for a moment. He understood the Sandshrew’s doubts, he was a ground type after all, and water didn’t mix well with that, but there was the growing issue of burning alive if they spent too much time arguing. “You have to.”

“Nupe.” Dale said, crossing his arms “Ol Dale wasn’t made ta get wet let alone soaked in one of those.” 

 

“Then you’ll die,” Rye said sharply, his eyes narrowing before he groaned in exhaustion. Surprised by his own outburst, he quickly added “If any of us stay longer, then we’ll all die.” He looked around as he spoke before pointing quickly to the side unable to believe their luck. An old tree had fallen out over the river nearby. It easily stretched over the width of the river’s banks “We can cross there.”

The mouse pokemon ’s dark blue eyes widened at the thought but he couldn’t see any other way for them to get across. He looked down at the dirt and an idea formed. The Sandshrew slapped his own forehead dramatically. In their haste and rush, the fire had been spreading across the ground and had been at the forefront of his mind to avoid. 

 

“I can just dig!” he declared before grinning at himself for letting something like that be forgotten. The heat was coming closer, he looked over his shoulder. The bright orange of the flames flickered ominously close, just above them on the slight rise in elevation. “Go on!” he said, nudging Rye toward the fallen tree bridge “I’ll meet ya on the other side.”

“Just do it!” Ryker said, looking over his shoulder, the blaze was coming closer, the trees that ran along the slight ridge above the river were starting to catch fire. Rye nodded, running for the fallen tree.

Once he got there, he stopped for a moment, looking over the naturally made bridge. The trunk was large, easily wide enough for the Fighting-type to traverse had he not been so tired. There was a shadow of doubt bubbling up inside his mind. How could they possibly escape the enormous inferno? They could keep running and running, but then what? Eventually, the fire would overtake them and they’d all die. Rye wasn’t too sure if even Ryker could be immune to this savage heat. It just didn’t seem like anything would be able to survive it.

He was torn out of his thoughts by a sudden searing painful sting on his shoulder. Jolted back to reality Rye turned around and gasped. Embers were falling from the trees above as the fire’s ever reaching tendrils licked at the trees above, the canopy starting to ignite. Time was running out.

The Riolu placed a paw on the first root, each was covered in moss, twisted and gnarled with age. He grasped the second and pulled himself up under it, his body twisting slightly as he maneuvered himself onto the top of the fallen tree. Rye looked down at the fast flowing river below him, gathering himself and starting to walk slowly cross the log, his hand held out slightly to help him balance on it.

Things were starting to go well for the group, Ryker fluttered down, hovering on the opposite bank of the fire, watching Rye’s progress when something caught his attention. A figure dashed through the flames, unphased by the blazing heat. The bird’s eyes narrowed, the figure was rushing right toward them, more specifically toward Rye.

He screeched out a warning, causing the figure to skid to a stop at the top of the flaming bank of the river. Getting a better look, he realized that it was a Monferno. The distinctive orangish fur, it’s long slender tail, an active flame licking the tip. The monkey looked up toward the sky, his eyes narrowing under his mask. 

The newest arrival said nothing, he opened his mouth, inhaling the hot air with ease and spewing forth a fresh stream of flames. Rye yelped in surprise, scrambling back toward the middle of the log as the flamethrower hit the end of the log in front of him.

“So some slipped through!” the Monfero chittered, the tone light and feminine revealing her gender. She moved forward, leaping through the air and landing in front of Rye, blocking his escape route. Taking another step back, he paused, feeling the growing heat at his back.

“Just get out of the way!” Rye shouted, his paws forming into fists as he clenched them in frustration.

“No can do!” The Monfero chirped “I’ve got a job, and wiping the two of you out is in it. Survivors can be very nasty for business after all. You’d be surprised how well people pay to silence loose ends.”

Ryker watched quietly, the flames started to creep over the log, Ryker took a step forward “Just get out of the way!” he said, raising his hands, a blushing sphere of energy started to form as he charged a Focus Blast.

“Not going to happen!” The Monferno said, shifting slightly, the arrogance in her stance evident. She wasn’t a real hardened slaver, she was just a bully used to picking on pokemon weaker than herself, or with the confidence that came from having a group of actual cold-blooded killers backing her up. Rye was the first one to ever stand against her when she was on her own, but she was sure she could defeat him.

The canine shoved his palm forward, sending the ball of glowing energy flying clumsily toward the female. She ducked, avoiding the blast as it collided with the trees behind her. A grin formed on her lips as she almost laughed allowed at the inexperienced fighter’s skills. 

With a show of bravado, she took a slow, dramatic step forward, her right hand balling up into a fist as flames slowly wreathed her hand, growing from the knuckle up to the elbow. This was all a game to her, there was no way she could lose. For each step forward that she took, Rye took one back, until the heat became unbearable. 

She raised her arm up, grinning like a madman as she made a flourishing jab forward, Rye sidestepped her, bring up his left hand to try and block it. He was too slow, the punch connected to his shoulder, pushing him back into the slow-growing wall of flames. 

A scream filled the air as the fire kissed his back briefly, the jackal fell into the fast flowing river, steam rising as he briefly ignited fur was submerged. Ryker watched in horror, frozen for a moment until the scream of his best friend shook him into action. Very little thought went into his actions.

A growing, white-hot fury filled the Fletchinder as he dove, falling down over the flames, he gained some speed, an ear-piercing shriek of rage and despair filled the air. Having forgotten about the bird, the Monferno turned, shock filling her eyes as a weight slammed into her.

She was weightless as she flew through the air, sharp talons dug into her skull as Ryker beat his wings frantically, carrying her off the log and over the river. He looked down, hatred filling his gaze as he let go, letting the primate fire type fall toward the raging rapids. There was a brief scream of shock as the icy cold embraced her, followed by silence.

Wings beating frantically, Ryker darted along the banks of the river, side to side as he searched for where Rye had been carried.

-000-

Swift grimaced as he stood slowly, a jolt of pain coursed through his body every time he moved his right arm. The cowardly shot Hyper Beam had caught him off guard, the explosive move had sent him colliding with a rock, landing on his right side first. Grunting softly, he moved each finger, they weren’t broken, thankfully.

The Dewott stretched his arm out slowly, sucking in a breath he rotated it in a small circle. It wasn’t dislocated or broken either, maybe just bruised, but he wasn’t a medic and couldn’t tell for sure. Once he was sure that it wasn’t a critical injury, he looked around, searching for the black shape of the Umbreon he had encountered fighting the Meowstic. The Warden wasn’t sure what to think of that peculiar eeveelution yet. She didn’t have any malice in her, that he was sure of. Just impulsive.

A soft groan emitted from nearby, he turned, spotting an onyx colored hind leg sticking up almost vertically out of the bushes. The leg twitched once, causing the ferns to rustle. He couldn’t help but snort in amusement as he walked toward it. Coming closer Swift found himself looking into the upside-down face of Skyla.

“Ouch…..” She groaned, blinking slowly as things started to come back into focus. “Why ya upside down?” she asked, slowly the two shifting Dewotts she saw merged into one. A look of concern on his face.

“You ok?” He asked as he crouched down, holding out his left hand for her to grasp.

“I’m alive right?”

“Yea.”

Skyla grinned, she rolled over and stood up, giving her fur a good shake to dislodge the twigs and leaves that had entangled within it. “Then I’m doing good.” She said, using her teeth to adjust the bag over her side. “The flute!” She squeaked, panic filling her eyes as she scrambled to the side. Her eyes and rings glowed faintly as she used her Psychic ability to open the flap of the bag.

Swift watched in quiet bewilderment as the Umbreon pulled out a long slender flute made carved out of bamboo. At least, it had been at one time. The wood was old, cracked and stained with age. And when she removed the cloth off of the entire thing, he noted that it had been broken into four jagged and uneven segments.

“Aw,” Skyla said, her disappointment showed in her tone as she sighed softly. “All that time wasted.”

“I’m sure we could get you another one,” Swift commented, looking over the old fragments. “It seems like that one has seen some better days, Family heirloom?” he asked.

“I er….no.” Skyla said quietly, a grimace forming on her slender snout as she shook her head “No, it was um…” Well, she wasn’t sure how she could explain it. “I may have found it inside of a museum…”

The Water-Type’s eyebrows rose on his head before he snorted softly at her comment. “Ah, well, as I said before, just make sure it’s none of Grassillia’s museums and we won’t have any issues.”

Now it was Skyla’s turn, she looked up at the otter, puzzled at what he was saying. She had expected just about anything else. An arrest, a stern talking to, even them going their separate ways now because she was a thief. He just shrugged it off though, as if it was nothing major or immoral to do.

“That's..it?” she asked in disbelief, trying to clarify. “I stole it...and you’re ok with that?”

Swift shrugged indifferently “Yea? You didn’t steal it from here, so why should I worry? I don’t even know why you took it to do I? You might have needed it in order to get some money to escape an oppressive country or even to strike back at them, the world’s not black and white.”

“I…..” Skyla started to speak, but she couldn’t bring herself to say much more. She was used to being shunned for it, simply tolerated by most for her impulsiveness, and yet, here was someone, a member of the law no less, who was telling her it was ok to steal when needed.

“If you took something from Kios or any Grassillian territories, then we’d have an issue.” Swift clarified, raising his left paw “But I’m the last one who should be judging someone for their past.”

The comment caught Skyla off guard, the question of how that was poised on the tip of her tongue, but Swift’s scowl warned her off from asking. Instead, she held each piece of the flute with her psychic before flinging them off into different directions. “Well, None of the teams from Avios need to know about that being me right?”

“Aye.” Swift said, snorting quietly “Ya just an innocent shiny Umbreon that just happened to be in the same area as another shiny Umbreon matching the description of a thief from another country passing by.”

Quickly, Skyla bobbed her head in agreement, unable to hide the smile forming at the corners of her lips. “Yea, just a coincidence!” 

 

Swift rolled his eyes but let it go, if anything thing cropped up from her minor theft, he planned to take care of it. It was one of the few perks of being a Warden after all. He turned toward the path, rolling his shoulder once more and grimacing as he felt another wave of rippling pain. “So no injuries then?”

Skyla paused in response, taking her time and making an exaggerated effort to look herself over. First, she raised a forepaw, stretching it out slowly, then she repeated the gesture with her hind legs before giving a quick shake of her head. “Just my dignity! You?”

Swift wanted to laugh, but doing so would only cause him to hurt even more. He rubbed at his aching arm while adjusting the bag and rearranging it so that it rested on his right sight. It’d hurt a bit more, but it’d be out of the way if he was forced to fight one-handed now. “Think I landed on it wrong, but I’ve suffered worse Since we’re both alive and well I think it’d be best to head toward the fire.”

The fire, Skyla had forgotten all about the inferno over the course of two pokemon trying to kill her within a very short span of time. She turned, looking out and gulped. The fire was hidden behind the trees blocking the downward trail they were on, but the smoke had grown, billowing black columns stretching. 

“We’re going into that?” she said quietly, unable to believe it.

“Yes.” Swift said simply, a scowl formed on his face as he looked up at the growing smoke “It’s unlikely, but the fire hasn’t spread this far and there’s a river down there if there are survivors, I want to search for them around there.”

“I don’t think anyone could survive that..” Skyla murmured softly, more to herself.

“I agree.” Swift said “But, if there are and I’m just standing around because it’s unsafe, then I won’t be doing my duty as a Warden.” as he said it, he tried to hide the doubt behind the persona of duty. It had worked often in the past when he had exposed himself to rather unpleasant circumstances for the sake of the people he served.

“Ah…” Skyla said, she looked between the Dewott’s fresh emotionless mask and the growing smoke before nodding to herself “Well, I said I’d help so count me in.”

When he had asked her for her help before, the fire hadn't been so bad, in all honestly, Swift wasn’t sure he could bring himself to even put her through the risks now. At the same time though, he wouldn’t nor could he stop her if she chose to come along. “It’s going to be dangerous.” he said, stating the obvious “There’s a good chance you could die if you do this.”

The Umbreon’s rings glowed softly, dimming as she thought it over. He was honest with her at least and this wasn’t the craziest thing she’s done to date. It’d be near the top of the list of stuff to try and kill her, but that was apart of the fun. You had one life to live and if she died trying to help someone else...was there’s something really wrong with that. She hesitated though, there wasn’t even a guarantee that anyone was nearby, what if they were risking their lives for nothing? The slavers could have already packed up and captured the other caravan guards and be on their way out. Something that Swift said came to mind though in conflict with this idea. There was a greater chance that someone could be nearby and in need of help.

Her thoughts and turmoil were interrupted a loud piercing screech from down the mountainside. 

“Let’s go!” Swift shouted, already the Dewott was racing down the trail, his adrenaline pumping fiercely through his veins as he moved. Skyla was shocked by his speed and kicked up dirt as she took off after him, her blood roaring in her ears.

The duo wasn’t that high up the small mountain and they made it down the short trail in a matter of minutes. “That had to have come from the river,” Swift shouted over his shoulder. His scout work of the area over the past couple of days as he investigated the rising slave raids paying off.

“Roger!” Skyla yelled as she followed him. The smoke was growing thicker. Looking off to the side, she could hear the roar of the fast flowing river. The fire crackled behind it, the opposite bank of the river was ablaze. Orange light danced among the trees, ashes and flaming leaves falling, disintegrating on contact with the river’s surface. There she spotted something and yelled out a warning as she skidded to a stop.

A small blue canine-like figure laid in the river, his body caught on the rocks as the water ran on, creating small white bubbling rapids all around him. Before she could say any more, there was a splash and she turned, in time to see Swift already in the water. He was fighting the currents as he grabbed for the Riolu’s arm. The figure was still, his face turned upward toward the sky thankfully.

One he had a good grasp on the pokemon’s arm, Swift pulled him to the opposite shore of the raging fire. The scent of burned fur was heavy in the air as Skyla leaped down the unstable rocks and boulders that lined and dotted the river’s shore.

“Is it...dead?” She whispered, unable to see if he was breathing or not. A grimace formed on Swift’s face as he laid the figure on his left side, he brought his hand to the blue muzzle and used his fingers to open his mouth slightly. Water started to pour out of the Riolu’s mouth and his chest was still.


	4. The Waterfalls

Chapter 4: The Waterfalls

Rye groaned softly and stirred, his body ached with a dull throb as he returned to the world of the living. Blood red eyes opened slowly, blinking as he looked upward. He was greeted with the smooth dark grey ceiling of the cave roof. A droplet of water dripping down and splashing him right between the eyes. He rubbed it away with a paw, that’s when the sudden pain hit him. Like a fire through his fur, coursing up from the upper left side of his back. He yelped in surprise, jerking upward and smacking his head against the slight rocky ledge that he hadn't noticed with a fleshy smack.

“Ow…” he grunted, regretting that he had woken up for a brief moment. The ruckus he had made had drawn the attention of the cave’s other’s occupants. He had managed to drown out the constant roar of the waterfalls outside. 

The first to arrive on the scene as he slowly sat back up was Dale. The Sandshrew peered into the small cavern and waved when he saw the Riolu shifting. There was barely any room for two or three pokemon he noticed as he waved toward the Mouse Pokemon in turn. Looking up once more, he realized that it was also small in terms of height, the room met the floor with only about four feet of clearance.

“Ya made it.” Dale said, grinning softly in the darkness as he held out a small apple“Gotta be hungry after all that.”

Rye closed his eyes for a moment, oddly relieved that the Ground-type had made it. He hadn't been sure if he’d even see him again after he burrowed into the dirt by the river. The fire! his eyes shot open as he grabbed the apple, he laid it on his lap, looking around quickly. “Ryker?” 

“Is ok.” A second voice cut in. One that Rye hadn’t recognized, he shifted a bit, looking over Dale’s head and spotting a blue-furred otter standing there. 

“He is?” he asked, relieved at the news as he swallowed his fears along with a chunk of the fruit. He was about to ask who the stranger was when his stomach decided to cut into the conversation with a low rumble. The apple seemed fresh, which surprised him, but he wasn’t going to question it, besides it was rude to speak when he had hungrily torn another chunk of the fruit off and demolished it.

Once he had finished the brief meal, he looked up once more, Dale had quietly left leaving just him and the Dewott staring at each other awkwardly in silence for the span of a few moments. “Who are you?” he eventually asked.

“Swift.” The Dewott said, idly rubbing at his sore arm as he spoke. “Me and my companion fished you out of the river.” He added, seeing Rye’s partially opened mouth, the clear question already formed on it.

“Oh…” Rye said quietly, closing his eyes once more as the events of the past couple of days rushed back in, the dull throb of his shoulder caused him to suck in a breath. “Thank you..how long has it been? The fire still going?”

Swift shook his head slowly, crossing his arms “A day or two, been hard to keep, everyone has been recovering. The fire burned itself out but half the valley’s been devastated.”

“Wow…,” Rye said quietly, The scale of the destruction had to be huge, during their run, he had noticed that the valley had seemed to stretch for miles in every direction. leaning his back against the damp wall of the cave. “What exactly happened?”

“After your near drowning?” 

Rye nodded, even though he knew Ryker was safe, he still didn’t know much about Swift, or even who his companion was. What had they been doing here during the blaze? Travelers maybe? The thought crossed his mind, but looking the Water-type over, it seemed possible, but the air around him, how he acted, He didn’t seem like the casual traveling type.

Swift thought it over for a moment, rubbing his chin as he settled down, sitting near the entrance to their little alcove.”Hm, where to start, me and Skyla, the Umbreon I'm currently working with were further up the mountain investigating reports when the fire started. We heard your Fletchinder companion’s screech and your scream as we were climbing down. The two of us found you in the river half dead.” He paused for a moment, letting Rye absorbing everything he had said so far before continuing.

“It didn’t look good for you at first, but we managed to get the water out of your lungs and drag you into these caves, situated behind some waterfalls that were nearby. After that though, Ryker was fluttering around frantically calling out for you. We flagged him down and brought him in and that’s when the Sandshrew popped up, He mentioned that you all had been attacked by slavers.”

“Yea, and his teammates,” Rye said, scowling at the memory. He still felt some anger toward the Tucannon for knocking Ryker out of the air with that stray ball of fire.

“Well, he didn’t mention anyone else, but if they survived the fire, chances are good that they were captured then,” Swift said, pausing as a startled yelp came from somewhere behind him, within the main room of the cave. 

Rye grimace, noticing that the Dewott had wasted no time, he had a hand on a scalchop while peering around the bend.  
“Sorry!” A high pitched and distinctively feminine voice squeaked. Swift sighed softly, resheathing the shell and eying Rye “You well enough to move? I think everyone’s clustered together to welcome you back to the land of the living.”

“Just be careful!” Came the familiar and sharp voice of Ryker. Rye couldn’t help himself but smile a bit as he nodded and with a grunt of effort, he pulled himself to his paws. There was a sudden wave of dizziness as he muttered for a moment, his eyes closed. He felt a paw on his shoulder and looked at it. 

“Take it easy, you’ve been lying down for the better part of two days and if you three have had the same kind of experience we did in the past couple of days then I’m sure you’re still tired.”

The Riolu grimaced a bit at the news but he nodded. “Alright, let’s go see everyone else.” He said, leaning against Swift as the maneuvered their way around the narrow bend. The main cavern wasn’t much bigger than the alcove, but there was enough room for each of its five residents to be able to have a foot or so of space between them. Their bags were piled up in the corner, just beside the entrance. Looking out, Rye noticed the bright light behind the continuous roaring flow of the white waterfalls outside, the cave entrance was situated just behind the falls, off a slender ledge that ran behind the gathering pool.

As they entered the cave proper, everyone turned to face the duo. Dale was smiling, Ryker bore his usual of concern and the Umbreon, a shiny one at that, had a mischievous smirk on her own muzzle.

“I’m Skyla!.” She chirped, dipping her head toward Rye, he paused, a bit put off by the sudden friendliness but gave a small nod, his attention turning to his best friend. 

“How you feeling?” he asked quietly.

“Alright, tired, but we’ve had time to rest here,” Ryker replied, hopping over the short distance, causing Skyla to scramble out of the way with a small yelp. “Sorry.” The bird said, before glancing back at his companion “How about you?” 

“Same…” Rye said, glancing between everyone, an awkward silence was starting to form as the three groups tried to get used to each other. Swift was the first to break the silence.

The Dewott stepped forward, clapping his hands together “Alright so I think it’d be good if we all figured out what we’re going to do from here.” He looked around, getting a couple of nods in agreement. He looked around crossing his paws behind his back “The situation is fairly simple so far, there are or were slavers in the area, each of you’ve been attacked by some.”

Once again, most of the group nodded their agreement. Swift paused, but no one had anything to say and he used it as a chance to continue. “These slavers have caused a lot of destruction for this valley, the nearest town is called Three Peaks, there’s an exploration guild there and they’d be our best bet to get to Kios from.”

Rye paused, raising a paw, he looked at Ryker, the same question stood on the Fletchinder’s beak.

“Yes?”

“Why Kios?” Rye asked, judging by Ryker’s reaction, he realized that neither of them had mentioned that part of their plan once they had gotten away from the slavers.

Swift raised an eyebrow for a moment, he had forgotten a key piece of info and realized it after a moment. “Right, sorry about that, It slipped my mind to mention that I’m a Warden, reporting this back to the HQ is my mission right now, I assumed that you three would want to accompany us there and help fill in the Commander.”

“The Wardens?” Ryker asked, his head cocked to the side. Swift opened his mouth to explain, but Skyla beat him to it.

“Their secret agents for Grassillia!” She declared, her fangs flashing as she grinned widely ”Chasing down murderers and things!” she added, her long slender tail beating wildly.

“Blunt, but accurate,” Swift said, rubbing his paw against his forehead. He turned toward the trio “Well, do you three want to come with us? I’m sure Lyn would be willing to reward you for the information.”

“I mean..we were planning to head there anyway.” Rye said, a bit wary about the situation “Once the escort mission was done we were wanting to start over in the capital.” 

“Yea, this sounds like a good way to get there,” Ryker added, the bonus of a reward sounded good as well, the couple of hundred gold coins that the Simisage had already paid them would only last them so long though. “Do you think we could join the Wardens?” he asked after a moment. It seemed like a good idea to him, especially if it was like the Exploration Guild and how they worked.

Swift grimaced a bit, thinking it over, Rye looked hopefully at him, having been about to ask the same question. “I don’t know.” he said honestly “The training is rougher and far more dangerous then what the Guild does, there isn’t no asking to join and you’re in. There’s training and making sure you can handle it all.” 

“Handle what?” Rye asked in confusion, so far it sounded exactly like what the exploration guilds and rescue teams did.”It’s just catching outlaws, right? And exploring.”  
“There's far more to what we do than that,” Swift said before bracing his back against the rough uneven wall of the cave, near the entrance. “I guess there’s time for a history lesson.”

“We have any berries left?” Skyla asked, cutting in. She blinked in confusion when the Dewott turned and shot her a withering glare. “What!?” She squeaked, protests for her innocence on the tip of her tongue.

“I wouldn’t mind a snack myself.” Dale cut in before Swift could say anything else.

Rye and Ryker were about to chime in their agreement, but Swift held up a hand and stopped them. “Alright then, everyone grab something then, we’ll take afterward.”

“Sounds good ta me,” Dale said. The Sandshrew dug through one of the bags, the brown one that had previously belonged to the Meowstic that Swift and Skyla had fought. Humming quietly, he grinned as he dug out the stash of berries.

Once the fruit was distributed among the five, they all dug in enthusiastically. The food wasn’t great, in fact, most of the apples and berries were severely bruised or battered, but they weren’t about to complain. Rye said nothing when he realized that the apple from before had been the freshest and that someone had saved it for him.

“Alright, so some history behind the Wardens.” Swift started, pausing to wipe the stray Oran berry juices from his chin. He hadn’t been too happy with the interruptions, but he wasn’t going to admit that talking was much easier with some food on his stomach. “Roughly four centuries ago Grassillia was the largest kingdom on the continent of Manaria. There were colonies to the west and east, from coast to coast the kingdom stretched. Over time the country's wealth and influence started to die out. There was betrayal within the royal family. Unable to maintain the massive empire, colonies dissolved when left to their own devices while a civil war broke out between brothers. King Kero won the day in the end and his brother’s attempted coup failed. The usurper was exiled, along with his followers to the south-west.”

“You mean Pyros?” Skyla asked, interrupted the moment Swift paused to draw another breath.

“Pyros is north-west of us,” Rye said quickly, unable to allow the geographical flaw to stay. “Helios lays to the south-west, along with Thermos, both are rugged and nearly lawless countries, but Thermos has some semblance of order with the various city-states that war with each other.”

“Aye.” Swift added, pausing and looking between Rye and Skyla “If I could continue?” 

“Of course!” Skyla said quickly “We won’t interrupt you.”

“Yea, please go on,” Rye added while grinning a bit.

“Why thank you,” Swift said crisply, hiding his irritation at the interruption that promised not to interrupt anymore. Dale and Ryker glanced at each other seemingly the only other ones who caught onto the irony.

“So, With the king’s brother and his people in exile, they settled down in Thermos, bringing about a semi-balance of order to the desert coast, but word reached Grassillia about slavery, there are other continents out there, like Valeria, slavery is legal and popular there among the different kingdoms and colonies. unfortunately, Thermos is positioned perfectly for a slave market and now, they’ve popped up all over the south-west coast inside of cities and towns. The Wardens originally were formed as a way to keep track and combat this new threat. We keep tabs on any threat to the country and act when needed, effectively we're the king’s intelligence and special mission task group, Wardens of the kingdom.”

“So the Wardens were formed in response to an issue inadvertently caused by the exile?” Ryker asked, his head tilted slightly as Swift nodded.

“Yes, but something like that wasn’t foreseen, no one could have known it would happen.”

“If only they had an intelligent force back then,” Skyla said with a near perfect straight face.

“Yea, maybe then they coulda seen it coming,” Dale added, rubbing his chin innocently. Suddenly, he felt the familiar sensation of someone’s glare burrowing into the back of his head and he turned, expecting to see Gen’s scowl. Instead, though, he was met with Swift’s furrowed brow. Something about the Dewott’s calmer demeanor unsettled him more than the Toucannon’s huffing and puffing and he swallowed.

“What happened to the king’s brother? Surely his descendants aren't just out there roaming are they?” Rye asked, diverting the Warden’s attention, much to a grateful Sandshrew’s relief., “They’d be legitimate contenders for the throne wouldn’t they?”

“No, Prince Heshin was disowned and stricken from the records of the official Genealogy, in the eyes of the law, his line has no more claim to the throne than any of you.” Swift explained, “And so far, there hasn’t been any proof that he even had children, but our reach out that far from the kingdom is small as it is.”

“It’s a good history lesson and all, but I’m only concerned on gettin’ back ta me shop out in Avios,” Dale said once Swift was finished. All four turned to look at him.

“Not coming with us?” Rye asked, the disappointment evident by his tone.

Dale shook his head slowly “Nah, I need ta get back home.”

“Do you know how to?” Swift asked while glancing out toward the screen of water “Might be unwise to roam, you’d have better luck if you came with us where we could arrange transport from Grassillia to Avios for you.”

The Sandshrew paused, considering that as he looked out as well “True, lotta them might still be around and I don’t fancy bumping into any of erm would be good for my health.” 

Swift nodded, looking toward the others “Alright then, It’ll be best if we all get some rest, I say we head off at nightfall and head toward Three Peaks, from there we contact the local guild and arrange to get to Kios, sound good?” he said, looking at each of his cavemates to be sure they understood.

Ryker and Dale nodded quickly, Skyla had hesitated, curious about leaving at night, but then she realized the value of the cover of darkness. She had used it many times herself in order to escape pursuit. Rye had been wondering the same thing before nodding as he came to the same conclusion.

“You guys get some sleep.’ Swift continued before grabbing one of the bags near the entrance.

“Wait, where are you going?’ Ryker asked, his head tilted slightly.

“I slept already.” Swift said with a shrug “Someone needs to keep a watch out in case anyone’s lurking nearby, we don’t know for sure that the slavers are gone after all.”

“At least let one of us come with you,” Rye said, He hadn’t said that because he didn’t trust the Dewott, though he knew little about him as it was. The suggestion made sense, and two people had a better chance.

Everyone watched as Swift’s eyes narrowed slightly as he thought about it, rubbing his chin, he nodded, pointing at Ryker “You then, everyone else try to get some sleep alright?” 

Rye nodded, pleased with that solution, Ryker was the best choice with the ability to fly and skim from the air. Rye was unaware that the bird had been asleep from exhaustion most of the morning and was one of their fresher and more alert members.

“Works for me,” Skyla said with a grin, she wasn’t one to argue if someone else wanted to take the brunt of the work for a while. She had been running most of the past week, only able to catch brief snatches of sleep that kept her from passing out. Now that their group had grown some, she felt less guilty about finally getting some proper rest. She curled up atop a small rock that protruded from the rough wall.

Rye looked to his left as Swift and Ryker disappeared through the narrow gap between the wall and water. Dale was already settled down, looking up at the ceiling, on his right, Skyla’s blue rings had dulled, emitting a soft pulsating light that gleamed on occasion as she dozed off into a deep sleep. Groaning softly the Riolu grabbed his and Ryker’s bag, settling down with his back against the wall, he patted it with a paw, doing his best to make it into a comfortable pillow before sleep finally claimed him.


	5. Into the Night

Chapter 5: Into the Night

“Skyla, it’s time to get up.”

The Umbreon groaned softly in response to the voice before shifting and curling up into a tighter ball. She had finally fallen asleep, lulled into the comfortable darkness by the roar of the waterfall. Skyla’s half asleep efforts were fruitless, the paw tugged at her sensitive ears and earned a sharp yelp in response. 

Skyla’s golden eyes shot open, red and narrowing into an accusing glare when she spotted her attacker. She tried to nail the intimidation factor in her stare down but Swift’s half-hearted attempts at trying to hide his amusement ruined the moment. It was the first time she had ever seen him having trouble keeping a blank stare and somehow it annoyed her even more.

“Was that really necessary?” She huffed before looking around and realizing that the two of them were the only ones left inside of the cave. Everyone else had already gotten up. The embarrassment that she had slept in past off them flooded her cheeks in a warm wave.

“Everyone’s already gathered their gear and waiting.”

“You coulda woke me up before,” Skyla said quietly, but before she could say more Swift had raised a paw and cut her off.

“You needed to sleep just like everyone else, they all think you’re helping me with this slaver investigation, while it’s not completely true it doesn't mean you’re any less exhausted than them.”

“Yea, but that doesn't mean I should get treated any differently,” She insisted. Swift shrugged in return before pointing over his shoulder toward the entrance.

“Well, they're waiting but we need to talk about something first,” He said while crossing his arms in front of him. “That Sandshrew was with the team chasing you, it looks like they got caught by the slavers or separated from him. Dale said they cut corners and didn’t wait to get a Border Cross warrant after finding out about the theft.”

“That means what exactly?” Skyla asked while settling down on her haunches and frowning. She could feel the fur along her neck rising, like this was bad news for her “It sounds like it’s going to be an issue.”

Swift didn’t respond at first, instead, his smile grew into a smirk that became more unsettling with each silent second that passed. Skyla took it as a moment to swallow while he continued. “Oh, it will be an issue for the guilds. You see-” 

“You two coming?” Ryker’s voice chirped from the entrance. Both pokemon turned and saw the Fletchinder perched on a smooth stalagmite. His beak was twisted slightly, resembling a smile when he added, “The sun’s gonna come up before you two get out here at this rate!”

The Umbreon leaned back, her nervousness growing at the news, there was still so many uncertainties that she didn’t understand. What was so significant about the team skipping a warrant? There was a strong possibility that they were still in the area and after her. It had been years since she had last been in Grassilla but that didn’t mean any bounties she had managed to accumulate were just forgotten.

“We’ll be out in a moment,” Swift said, glancing over his shoulder at the bird. Skyla’s gaze followed, watching the Fletchinder’s almost indiscernible shrug before he turned and hopped out along the ledge. Once he was gone Swift turned back toward her “ Basically the guilds love their paperwork, it’s required for them to operate independently within each country with the amount of freedom and authority they carry. Skipping this warrant means they broke protocol and now with that flute of yours conveniently fragmented and discarded into the fire they can’t prove you did it. Dale and that team never saw you when they were together, and in exchange for safe passage directly to his shop he’s agreed to be able to forget about ever encountering you.”

Realization dawned on her, She’d be free from being hunted as soon as they got Dale out of the country and back home. Relief flooded into her like a rushing tide. Groaning in relief she gave a small nod, she could start over now.

“I know of a way you could put your skills to good use as well,” the Dewott said, his rare grin returning “If you join the Wardens then any bounties set against you will be paid for by the crown.”

That news caused Skyla to squeak and nearly choke on the breath she suddenly drew in. “What? Why would they do that! Why would they want me?” She asked when she was able to breathe properly once more

“It’s the king’s way of helping to bring in those with desirable skill sets, skills that could be considered highly illegal in any other field.” 

“You mean theft.” Skyla blurted out before closing her eyes. Her legs felt shaky all of a sudden, this was too much to take in. Not only could she start over, but she could start over completely fresh, and with a possible new job no less. “What...what do I need to do to make this happen?”

“Well, usually there’s a selection process, a waiting list and a bunch of paperwork to fill out, but after watching how you acted on the mountain I took the liberty of writing out a report detailing it. Including your bravery in fighting those slavers. As soon as we reach Three Peaks I’ll mail it off with my report back to HQ, by the time we get to Kios the path should be smoothed out to where you’ll just need to meet with Lyn. After that comes the training.”

Skyla gave a small nod, gulping quickly before she tried to speak. She ended up sitting down because of how faint she felt from the news. As much as she wanted to believe that it was all possible her own doubt started to worm thoughts into her head. “I-I don’t think I’d be good enough, I’m just a thief. Why would the king even be willing to pay for skills that he could get someone trained for, someone good.”

The Dewott took a step forward and placed his hand on her shoulder “Because you are good at it and you already have experience in the field, Skyla do you know what I did before I came to the Wardens?”

The question caught her off guard, taking a moment to look him over only reminded Skyla of their differences. Where she was hesitant and felt weak, he stood confident and strong. So far he had come up with a plan almost effortlessly for anything they had encountered. One thought crossed her mind, something she was sure of. He was trained for it, he had to have been. 

“Someone better than me,” She said quietly before feeling his grip on her shoulder tightened. Looking up she saw the Dewott ‘s brows had creased, his smile faded away before he spoke.

“No, by your standard, and by the standard of society, I’m far worse than you.” He said quietly before looking away and letting go of her shoulder. “Please at least consider the offer alright? You can make something of yourself out of the ashes. You think being a thief was bad? Try being a killer.”

Skyla’s ears perked, her eyes widened at the revelation. She stared at his back, dumbstruck and unable to speak. He wouldn’t lie to her, that she knew for sure, but he was a killer? Oddly enough, she was able to believe it. The skills he had shown before fitted right in with the types of fighters from the stories. What happened though? What had pushed him to such a life? Had it been forced onto him? Could he have embraced that darkness before getting tired of it? So many questions threaten to spill from the tip of her tongue that Skyla had to physically bite it in order to keep from asking.

He had shared this much with her and she could see that he clearly didn’t want to elaborate even more. “I..if you think that I can...I’ll do it,’ she managed to get out the words out. The Dewott said nothing, his only acknowledgment that he had heard her was a nod.

“Alright, we still need to get to the town.” he said before turning back around and gesturing toward her bag “I’ll head on out and wait while you get situated,” With that being said he turned quickly and headed toward the entrance.

Using her Psychic to hold it in the air she squeezed into the harness and felt the familiar weight of the bag. A sigh of content escaped when she finished adjusting the straps, the bag had been through a lot with her. It had held so many of the treasures she had found, a lot of the relics and items she chose to ‘liberate’ and fled the scene of more guards then she could count. It was almost like reconnecting with an old friend, one who had been through the same stuff that she had gone through and had never treated her any differently for it.

“We can do this.” She said to herself while giving herself one last shake in an attempt to dispel the nervous energy that tingled along her spine. Sucking in a breath she stepped toward the waterfall and followed the narrow ledge out into the growing darkness.

Coming out of the cave Skyla looked around, searching for everyone else. They were all gathered beside the pool of water, each checking their own gear or chatting. Ryker hovered above the group, occasionally spitting embers out into the darkness. The sparks fell to the earth and fizzled out over the water. Rye was crouched down and filling his waterskin.

She turned her nose upward and took in a deep breath of the crisp night air, the scent of the burnt forest lingered heavily around them. It reminded her of a campfire and the past when she had been curled up beside one waiting for the day to come to an end. 

Stepping toward the waters’ edge Skyla eyed Rye before turning her head and shifting her back. Grabbing her own waterskin she placed it between her paws and used her teeth to pull the cap off. Rye held his hand out, offering to fill it for her but she gave a small shake of her head and mumbled “you're doing enough.” before grasping it between her teeth and lowering it into the water. The leather sack filled quickly and she could feel the cool water drip down her lips tauntingly. Once the skin was full she used her psychic to screw the lid back on and attach it to her harness.

With the sun down and the moon on the horizon, her rings brightened up, casting a blue ethereal glow around her body. The nighttime belonged to her, she felt as if nothing could knock her down or go wrong now that she could see the moon’s light in the distant horizon.

“Alright, everyone ready?.” Swift called out, they all nodded and he pointed over his shoulder to the south “Good, we’re about five miles away from Three Peaks. The story is simple to keep to. You two,” He said, gesturing toward Rye and Ryker. “Keep to the truth, you were guards that got attacked in an ambush by slavers and chased off course.”

The pair of friends nodded confidently and looked at each other. Rye frowned and paused. Seeing the action Swift gestured for him to speak. 

“What happened to the Grovyle who caused all of this?” The Riolu asked while adjusting his bag. Briefly, he grimaced when the shoulder strap pressed against his burned left shoulder.

“That’s for the guild to figure out, you’ll be able to get proper treatment there as well. Once things are settled I want you two to accompany Dale back to his bookshop alright?”

Ryker bobbed his head before glancing at the Sandshrew. “Weren’t you and those other two hunting someone?”

Skyla froze up, her ears perking and her eyes widening. The two had bumped into Dale already? And they had met with the team he was helping? Clearly, they didn’t know or suspect that it was her that had been their target, but it put Swift’s plan for her at risk if they did somehow connect the dots. She groaned inwardly, why had she had to be born as a shiny pokemon? It was far too distinctive for a job that requires quite a lot of anonymity.

“Ya we was, but they done got mixed up on who it is. Someone swore they saw an Umbreon but it turned out ta be a Glaceon.” Dale replied and Skyla sighed in relief. She caught the brief look he shot at Swift. It was small, barely a blink, maybe she was just seeing things but the Dewott gave an indiscernible nod in response. It looked like he had anticipated the same issue arising.

She watched as Rye’s eyebrows rose in disbelief. Skyla held her breath, her heart beating so rapidly that she was sure they’d hear it and somehow know that it was her. Ryker turned his attention onto her. She swallowed, he seemed like the sharper of the two, had he figured it out?

“Good thing you didn’t bump into them then, could have turned nasty.” He said, her fears alleviated and she released the breath that she hadn’t realized she was holding in. They couldn’t get to Three Peaks quick enough at this rate, She wasn’t sure how long she could handle the stress. It was necessary to lie and keep the two in the dark, it didn’t ease the guilt that bubbled up though.

The thought had her pausing and realizing the irony in it the more she thought about it. Of course, she can handle massive fires, fleeing across a country and living a life in the shadows, but the mere idea of someone finding out her secret in this group had her tiptoeing around every glance and over analyzing every word spoken. Then it hit her out of the blue, the sudden realization that this time she had something to lose. Something that was worth fighting to keep. The chance to make something real out of herself

“Glaceon and Umbreon have identical footprints, that's why there was a mix-up, I’m sure someone saw the moonlight reflecting off the Glaceon’s fur and mistook it for an Umbreon’s glowing rings,” Swift said, cutting into the conversation. The moment he said it Skyla could feel three pairs of eyes turning onto her. Her glowing blue rings only seemed to grow brighter and draw attention the moment Swift had said it.

“We should get going,” the Umbreon said quickly while flicking her ears toward the south. She hated being the center of attention. It never boded well with her line of work.“We still have a long walk, don’t we?”

“Yea, leaving now and moving at a slow pace should see us before the walls of Three peaks before sunrise, that will give us time to set up camp for the night and head in when the sun rises,” Swift said, before starting toward the trail.

“If we’re gonna be near the walls before sunrise, why not just head in when we get there?” Rye questioned. Skyla guessed he didn’t want to spend another night out here if they didn’t have to. Personally, she was hesitant to enter any town at the moment. Fearful that their fragile web of lies could come falling down at any kind of inquiry by the Guild.

“The town’s gate will be closed until morning with there being news of slavers in the area,” Swift explained. “It will be, at least, if they follow protocol. Either way, showing up in the dead of night after this massive blaze will draw unwanted attention to us.”

“Right then,” Ryker said, he glanced at the Riolu and saw the disappointment on his face. “A few more hours won’t hurt too much will it?”

Rye raised a paw, ready to complain before closing his mouth and ending his protests. He realized just how tired everyone was and he refused to add onto that just because he was injured. “No, let’s go.”

-000-

The moon had risen high over the mountain valley in the hours it took the group to finally come within an hour of the town. The bright light had cast down over the black and twisted husk of the trees. But gradually Skyla could see evidence of the areas where the fire had been stopped. It had started with an occasional sprig of green growth cropping up from between the burnt roots. Over time it became more and more frequent until the only evidence of the blaze was the smell lingering on the air.

The trail they were followed eventually ran alongside a creek and Skyla paused to take in the scene around here. It seemed untouched. Various ferns and wildflowers grew along the shore. Each bulb sporting a different color, even in the dark the Umbreon could see the deep purple and vibrant red petals.

“It’s one of the benefits of having a large Grass and Bug-type population in the kingdom,” Swift said while coming to stand beside her. “Given time, they will be able to erase any evidence of the fire, though it’ll probably take over a year with the damages caused.”

Skyla gave a small now while looking around in awe. “How do they manage it?”

“Some say Zygarde blessed the kingdom at its conception centuries ago, true or not there’s plenty of legends surrounding the Legendary, saying it’s cropped up in places much like this to help restore things back to the way that it should be.”

Skyla’s smile shifted, turning into a frown at the news. Zygarde, it was a name she had heard of but not one she had bothered to learn much more about. She decided that she’d need to fix that once things blew over. It really had been a long time since she had visited a library. Not since she had begun her sporadic career in liberating lost relics.

“Ah.” She said, distracted by the burning curiosity to learn more as soon as she could. “Are there any books about it?” in a way she hoped there was, but at the same time she was silently praying for there not to be. The allure of tracking one down was almost as addictive as her kleptomaniac collecting.

Her hopes got doused rather quickly, though, when Swift confirmed her suspicions. Glancing down at the passing water he said “There are tons of books on it, heaps alone at the Kios Library. We can check it out if you like once we get there.”

“I’d like to,” Skyla responded quietly before stepping back onto the trail proper where everyone else had gone on ahead a bit. They were all paused along a bend in the trail waiting patiently on the duo. Once they caught up Skyla was able to see that they hadn't stopped to wait on them.

The bend in the trail gave way to a slight slope, it led down to a barren plain where the ground had been leveled out and cleared of trees for nearly a mile. In the center of the clearing, she could make out the silhouette of at least four towers. A large wooden palisade surroundedthe vague and seemingly random lights that could be seen making up the battement and walkways. Occasionally a pokemon passed by one of the lanterns and blotted out for a moment.

“Welcome to Three Peaks, one of the largest settlements west of Kios and where we’ll be spending a couple of days,” Swift said, gesturing toward the town with a raised hand. “We’ll camp here in the shelter of the trees and make our way down mid-morning. Everyone can use this time to catch up on some sleep.”

Sleeping in had left her feeling well rested and refreshing. She knew she wouldn’t be sleeping again soon. Besides, she owned the night and this would be the first time she could enjoy it without fear of pursuit in weeks. Looking over her shoulder she saw that everyone else was settling down. Dale and Rye were speaking in hushed tones under a tree. Ryker was perched on the broad root of another, his left wing raised up with him running his beak along the feathers.

Swift had his arms crossed while surveying the same scene. He turned and looked at Skyla before asking “Gonna take a look around?”

“Yea.”

“Just don’t go too far.” 

“Alright.” She said before turning around and pushing past a bush. Seeking out a quiet place close enough to the camp but far enough away to where she’d be left alone with her thoughts. A brief search yielded the perfect spot a few minutes later when she stumbled across another, smaller clearing well within reasonable distance of the others.

Skyla looked around before finding an ideal place to sit. A few fern stalks made a very comfortable bed after she flattened them out with her paws and body. She curled up into a loose ball and tried to think over everything that had happened that day.

Swift has said she could make it as a Warden, but she still wasn't sure about it. There was still plenty of time before they got to the capital. A week at least if they stayed in Three Peaks for a couple of days. It left her plenty of time to think about her agreement to at least try. It'd be beneficial, that she did know. If she got enough training to end up even half as confident as the Dewott then she’d be happy enough.

Being desired for her experience and skillset was the biggest allure to the prospect. Instead of being shunned and hated for it. She realized now that she did want it. It all sounded like it’d be nothing but good for her. Maybe it was too good to be true. Why would Swift use her though? She knew he was capable of conceiving well thought out plans with ease. He had proven that with his plan for Dale and getting him away as soon as they could. She just couldn’t see where she’d fit into some kind of scheme for the Warden. 

At least, she hoped it would all turn out the way he said it could. She could finally become something she could be proud of instead of disgusted with. “We got this Skyla.” She said to herself while closing her eyes. This far from the fire she could hear the soft chirps of some Bug-Type out and about. The wind rustling through the trees causing the branches to creak. It was so peaceful here. As much as she told herself that she wasn’t tired she could feel her consciousness slowly slipping away.

She heard something, it was loud and continuous. Whatever it was, it was also very heavy. Skyla groaned softly and opened her eyes. She blinked in confusion because the clearing was no longer dark. Beams of sunlight filtered through the trees. She had fallen asleep again! “Stupid, Stupid, Stupid.” She muttered to herself. The noise that had awoken her was still there. She perked her ears, positive that she had heard it somewhere.

Maybe she has been lucky to have succumbed to the urge to nap because she finally placed a name to the noise. It was the beat of wings hovering in the air. It sounded like quite a lot too. Her blood ran cold as she looked toward the source. It came from the direction of the camp where everyone else was supposed to be.


	6. Three Peaks

Chapter 6: Welcome to Three Peaks

Someone had found the others. Skyla closed her eyes and swallowed. Hadn’t Ryker mentioned a Charizard leading the Slavers, the very one that had been responsible for starting the fire? Panic threatened to overtake her. She had to keep a clear head if she was going to get out of this alive and she took a moment to breathe. Looking over her shoulder she saw another path winding through the trees.

She could escape and slip off into another part of the valley. They’d never be able to find her if she kept to the deeper forests that were left untouched by the fire. She knew she could start over somewhere else. Maybe Pyros, the volcanic region north-west of Grassillia was large enough. There was also Aqulios, the cluster of islands that rested on the south-east portion of the continent. It’d be easy to take a boat there and vanish into the archipelago. She took a step toward the trail before she froze. The temptation was great but leaving now would lead to the exact type of situation she was trying to get out of. 

The forest was thick around here, she could easily creep through the ferns and get close to the others, but then what? Even if it was the Charizard and it was the only enemy there was no way she’d be strong enough to defeat it alone. If the others were fighting then she was positive that she would have heard something by now. 

“Won’t learn anything by staying away.” She said to herself, she knew she needed to check it out. With one last regretful look toward the twisting trail, she crept into the nearby undergrowth. Pawstep by pawstep she weaved her way expertly through the briars and ferns. It looked like Swift had been right about her. Her skills could have other uses besides stealing if she got creative, or if the situation became dire enough.

All of her senses were on high alert as she pressed her dark fur up against the broad trunk of a tree. She recognized it from last night, the camp should be just around the corner. She closed her eyes and listened but there was nothing except for silence. Fearing the worst Skyla peered around the corner of the tree and into the clearing.

It was empty, there was no evidence of anyone remaining. Skyla frowned and looked toward the roots of the tree the others should have bunkered down between for the night. None of their bags were laying around. Whatever had happened it looked like there had been enough time for everyone to collect their equipment before vanishing.

Maybe Swift had known something was going to happen? Or could they have had enough time and warning to move away? Something seemed off though, why hadn’t anyone came and grabbed her? The Dewott at least would have been able to find her, she lacked the knowledge to be able to hide her trail from a trained eye.

Skyla’s golden eyes widened and she got an idea. The Aviosian team that had been hunting her had tried to find her by her tracks. She looked at the ground around her, there was a jumbled cluster of prints in the soft dirt around the tree’s trunk. She leaned in to get a better look before sighing. She couldn’t tell whose prints were who’s or even how many sets there were.

“Damn it.” She muttered in frustration, tracking was something else that she needed to master. She gave the small clearing one last glance. It looked perfectly normal though. The wind blew along the stubby grass. That was when she noticed something off about it.

There was an indention in the grass where the trees thinned out and she could see the bright blue sky above. Stepping closer she realized that the cluster of pawprints started and stopped at the deep imprints. “Someone landed here,” she said , her eyes narrowing. The largest prints were only there once. It was only one pair, two deep gouges that looked somewhat like a Y.

Looking closely, the thief noticed one set of prints that moved away from the cluster and into the nearby bushes. She started to follow them into the undergrowth “Where are they…” she murmured when she finally reached the edge of the clearing.

"You do know you talk to yourself right?”

Skyla yelped in surprise and scrambled back away from the voice, her eyes widened in fear, her heart raced inside of her chest. The fur along her spine rose and she crouched low to the ground. She flashed her fangs at the bushes, a dark violet sphere of energy gathering around her maw.

“Nice reflexes, but you hesitated and now you could be dead. Don’t be afraid to defend yourself,” The voice said and Swift came out of the bushes. Skyla groaned in relief, the Shadow Ball dissolved into the air and she sat up. “What exactly where you going to do if I had been someone else?”

“Um, I would have thought of something,” Skyla said quickly. She didn’t like thinking about it because she knew she was winging the whole thing. Running was her first option, it had saved her frequently enough that she was rarely in a physical fight by herself.

The Dewott didn’t even have the good graces to try and hide his amusement behind the disbelieving snort. “And if there was more than one attacker?”

Skyla narrowed her eyes and frowned. She drew a blank on that one and she sighed. “I don’t know, it hasn’t happened yet except for guards and I’ve always been able to outrun them.”

“Throw an attack at them and running isn’t a bad idea, it puts space between you and them. Another option is to attack them first, most people don't expect a fugitive to charge at them if their outnumbered and it gives you the advantage” Swift said, he came around to her other side and gestured over his shoulder. “I saw you trying to use the tracks, smart move, but why did you stop?”

“The idea came to me, but I don’t know how to read them beyond following the prints.’ Skyla admitted before glancing back at the cluster of tracks. “I’m hoping a book can help me learn more about it when we get to Kios.”

“Well, it won’t be hard to find, tracking is apart of a Warden’s training and there’s a whole shelf on the subject in the HQ’s library,” Swift said while looking down at the series of tracks. “Can you guess what happened here from the prints alone?” 

Skyla tilted her head at the question before turning her attention toward the ground and giving it another look over. “I think someone landed here, carrying others,” Standing up she moved closer and studied the area around the deep and shallow steps. Swift’s tracks were the only ones that moved away from the cluster, so it could only mean one thing.

“Dale and Rye climbed on and Ryker followed in the air. They left with whoever landed here?” She asked, turning her attention to the Warden for confirmation.

He nodded before pointed off toward the direction she had come from.

“It was an Exploration team, they came to investigate the fire and spotted us. When they learned that we had an injured member they offered to help Rye out. The three of them are going to head off toward Avios once Rye’s healed up,” He said before looking out toward the direction of the town and then back at Skyla. “With that settled you and I can go in and resupply, send off the reports and start for Kios, by the time we get to there things should be smoothed out for you to officially join our ranks.”

“Why don’t we just fly to Kios then?” Skyla questioned, So many things could go wrong between now and then. In a way, she just wanted to get there as soon as possible, the anticipation of what could happen felt like she was picking a lock. It could all line up and click into place or one wrong move and it’s all fall down around her.

“I want word of you to get there before we do, that way Lyn can start the process in Kios to get your bounties paid off, and judging from your actions I’m guessing it’s going to be a lot,” Swift said before he paused and rubbed his chin. with a teasing tone he casually added, “Unless you’re planning to rob every town we pass blind, that could complicate things.”

Skyla huffed in response and turned her head away from the Dewott. As serious as the accusation was, it was hard for her to try and maintain her air of injured dignity when she mumbled “Not even a couple of towns? Not all of them, but one or two?”

Skyla smirked when Swift looked over his shoulder and stared at her. She had expected a look of utter disbelief but instead, he greeted her with a cocked eyebrow. “Sure, practice makes perfect after all.”

“Aw come on, I gotta keep my pra- what?” Skyla squeaked, she stared at the Dewott in incredulity. His serious expression left her far more confused than anything. “You just said I could practice?”

“Of course.”

“In towns? Stealing?” She had to be sure that they were both on the same page and she stepped in front of Swift to stop him. They were in sight of Three Peak’s walls now and she raised her left forepaw and swept it toward the wooden palisade. “In places like that? You’re saying you want me to steal in towns?” 

“What?” Swift said with mock surprise and he shook his head dubiously “Of course not, You really must learn to control those impulses, otherwise you might end up with another bounty. Now I’d suggest we drop this topic until we’re far from Three Peaks,” He moved around the baffled Umbreon and started off down the slight rise and left Skyla staring in bewilderment at the nearby trees.

“What? But you just said...I mean….what?” Skyla said to herself, shaking her head and turning she took off after Swift, determined to catch up. He had gotten the better of her this time and she couldn’t allow that to happen for long. She’d think of something she could do to get back at him, one day.

-000-

The duo took their time to cross the cleared expanse that surrounded Three Peaks for nearly a mile all around it. The sun had risen higher into the blue sky and scents drifted on the wind, carrying the tantalizing aroma of cooked meats and fresh fruits. Skyla groaned hungrily, she had to constantly shallow just to keep the drool from hanging down her chin. Swift had stayed silent most of the last mile of their journey. Tossing occasional glances at the Dewott she figured he was plotting something complex, maybe practicing maneuvers in his mind or plotting the assassination of some government official.

He pulled a rolled up sheaf of papers out of his bag skimmed over them as they walked, muttering something under his breath before stuffing them right back into his bag. Skyla’s curiosity was nagging, no begging for her to figure out exactly what the papers said but every time she thought she had crept close enough to peek at them Swift shifted and obscured her view once more. After the twelfth attempt, she gave up in frustration. She knew that it was rude and wrong of her to keep trying to read over his shoulder, but now she realized that the papers could very well be important, maybe even secrets of Grassillia and she was positive that it had something to do with the serious scowl he wore every time she shot him a not so subtle glance that slowly turned into a glare with each failure. The idea that he had caught onto her antics the first time, and strung her along the entire time for his own amusement hadn’t even come to mind.

Thankfully she didn’t have much more time to contemplate it because they had finally arrived at the gate of the wall and Skyla looked up in awe. Three Peak’s defenses were well maintained, the towering wooden wall stood at least twelve feet high, the thick logs were carved with decorative runes and floral patterns. Movement to the side caught the thief’s attention and she turned her golden eyes toward the gatehouse. 

It was a simple set up, here the wall rose another eight feet upward to accommodate the massive oak portcullis. Looking closer She realized that the grated wood door was studded and reinforced by iron studs. It looked like it could survive a direct blow from a Hyper Beam. The thought caused Skyla to shudder when she recalled her earlier experience with the attack.

The movement had come from a green pokemon, just a few inches smaller than her own ears. It was a Grovyle, green-skinned and slender, bipedal and built for agility. She noticed the distinctive long leaf hanging from its head. Spotting the two of them, it came closer with curiosity and suspicion in its gaze.

“You came out of the fire?” he questioned, looking the two over, he made note of Skyla disheveled fur and the streaks of ash that covered them both, though it was more distinctive against Swift’s blue fur.

“Yea, just stopping for supplies and to mail some stuff off,” Swift explained, they had agreed to let him do the talking, Skyla was fine with it. She wanted as little to do with the guilds or guards as she could get.

“What kind of stuff you trying to send off.” The guard asked, he crossed his arms and barred their entry through the gate. “Wouldn’t be anything concerning the Guild would it?” He asked accusingly.

“Not unless you want an added report about improperly trained guards needing a refresher in minding their own business.” The Dewott said with a flat tone. “I’m sure the Warden HQ would be delighted to know.” That got the Grovyle to straighten up, he lost his relaxed posture and moved back slightly.

“Wardens then? What are you doing way out here?” He asked, Skyla observed the situation silently, picking up on the underlying disbelief that his tone betrayed.

 

“Things that don’t concern Exploration Guilds,” Swift said while adjusting his bag, his own impatiences growing with the new guard’s antics.

“It will though, Guildmaster Ava intends to question anyone who knows about the fire, Wardens included.” The Grovyle said with a slight smirk, matching Swift’s attitude. “If this business is too important for that then you can just turn around and leave.” Though he had never really interacted with the kingdom’s Wardens directly the Grovyle shared the same view as many Exploration Guild members. To them, Wardens were nothing but vigilantes that took away from their contracts and coin. He knew these two would happily submit now, eager to get out of the forest and back into civilization.

He was wrong though. Swift shrugged his shoulders and turned to ignore the guard. He looked at Skyla before gesturing over his shoulder.”We’ve got enough supplies to last until we reach Rivershoal, we can send it all from there.” He raised a hand dismissively and waved it at the Grass-type guard whose eyes widened at the realization that he may have just cost his guild valuable information about the strange fire that had broken out days before. The Guild Master wouldn’t be pleased.

Skyla watched the smug look on the guard turn into silent realization and then despair. He raised a hand to stop the two of them but a new voice broke in from behind him.

“What exactly is going on here?” it said, the deep tone revealed it to belong to another male. Judging by the Grovyle's sudden change in posture as he straightened out and lost his slouching shoulders Skyla found it safe to assume that it was one of his higher-ups. “Care to explain Jaz?”

“Zavion sir!” Jaz said quickly, he turned around quickly and Skyla got a glimpse of yellow jagged fur before her view was blocked once more. “I er, I were just stopping these two from entering sir, they claim to be Wardens, but they wouldn’-”

“You’re barring Wardens from entering one of their own towns?” the voice cut in, Skyla could almost feel the irritation and disbelief conveyed by his tone. She coulda swore she could also feel his glare burning through the inexperienced guardsmen. “You do not bar a Warden from entering, understand? They have every right to come and go as they please. Did you ask to see the Feather?”

Feather? That caught Skyla’s attention and she shot Swift a look. He reached into his bag and held up a small silver feather for her to examine. The stem was made of something clear, possibly glass or crystal. “Our symbol,” he mouthed silently. She nodded quickly, understanding dawning on her. If she was supposed to be an Initiate then she should have already known this. She saw Swift point at himself before mouthing “Overlooked it” just as Jaz moved to the side.

When he moved Skyla realized that the fur she had seen belonged to a Jolteon. The lean canine was similar to her in body style but she could see the muscle beneath his pelt. Occasionally sparks shot up off the jagged edges and around the blood red bandana he wore around his neck. On the scarf she noticed the Guild Badge was attached, It was a pale green and brown oval segmented down the middle with a pair of crystal wings jutting out of the edges. The colors showed that he belonged to the Grassillian branch of Guilds.

She could feel his eyes looking her and her companion over, his eyes lingered on her own golden gaze and her blue rings. He raised an eyebrow in surprise before turning his attention onto the embarrassed guard with a warm smile. “Always ask for the Feather if you’re not sure, it’s not that often that a Warden comes out this way so I’m sure you didn't know what to do. In the future Ava won’t accept this type of behavior, understand?”

“Yes, sir,” Jaz said quickly before looking the two so-called Wardens over, he also stared at Skyla’s rings and opened his mouth, causing her to swallow. “Sorry about that, can I see your Feathers please?”

Swift stepped forward and presented his, the Grovyle took it and looked it over as if he was checking to see if it was real or not. After a few seconds of pretending to know what he was looking for he returned the feather. It was enough time he figured to convince the watchful gaze of Zavion that he hadn’t skipped over that part of the training manual. Then he held out his hand expectantly to Skyla. She gulped and shot a look at Swift before she opened her mouth.

“She lost hers in the fire,” Swift said stepping between the two of them. “A Mightyena Slaver attacked us when our backs were turned and nearly knocked her off the mountain alongside her badge.”

“Slavers?” Zavion repeated before frowning “So the rumors were true then? Slavers in the area?” 

“Yea,” Skyla said, eager to get the focus off of herself. “We were coming to investigate it when the fire broke out.”

“I take it the injured Riolu and company being treated at the Guild are your companions? Fellow Wardens?” Zavion questioned.

“No, we encountered them inside of the fire. Fished him out of the water and kept him from drowning actually.” Swift clarified before gesturing toward Skyla “I’d love to keep chatting but we really do need to get these reports mailed off to Kios and then head off ourselves, it’s a long trek back on foot.”

The Jolteon nodded sympathetically “It is, I remember when I left there years ago, feels like just yesterday.” He said, “Jaz, why don’t you go take your break, I think Team Smoking Twig is supposed to relieve you aren't they?”

“Yea.” Jaz said, he was relieved that they have moved away from his blunder and he nodded quickly “Another five minutes I think.”

“Well, I’ll stay on post until they get here. You’re dismissed.”

“You sure sir?” The Grovyle asked with uncertainty.

Zavion gave the guard a firm nod “Yes, are you going to question an order or catch Rose’s Cafe while she’s still got some of your favorite berry juices left? You know how quickly they sell out.”

Skyla watched as the Grovyle perked up and gave his superior a haphazard salute before he rushed off into the town and around the corner of a street. The Jolteon was smart, she realized, by doing something like this he just earned Jaz’s respect. She could feel her own mixed emotions growing about her fellow Eeveelution. He seemed to be the opposite of any guild or guard she’s ever met before.

 

“Sorry about that, you know how eager youth can be,” Zavion said, breaking her out of her thoughts. The Jolteon settled down onto his haunches. “The relief should be along shortly, but I’d like to ask a favor of you two,” he said addressing Swift directly.

The Dewott gave a small nod, Though he didn’t show it physically, Skyla was positive that he didn’t trust the easygoing Explorer. “It’ll depend on what it is.”

“First off, sorry about that mix up once more, I’d like to ask if you could come by the Guildhall and speak with me in my office so I can take a report on what happened up in the mountains,” Zavion said, his attention dancing between the two of them and the road before the gate.

Swift thought about it for a moment, weighing their options. The longer they stayed in the town, the easier it’d be for someone to recognize Skyla. He knew he could more than likely talk them out of any kind of arrest, but without Lyn even knowing of Skyla’s existence, Any inquiries by the commander would be awkward. On the other hand, though, it would still take nearly a week to get back to Kios and he was reluctant to say no to the comforts they could get while the opportunity was there.

“Sure, how about tomorrow though? We’ve been traveling quite a while and we’d really appreciate the chance to recover and relax without the threat of something trying to kill us for a night.”

“I never did understand that part of being one, seems to be in your job description doesn't it?” Zavion said with a smile. “I still think all you Wardens are either incredibly crazy or suicidal, probably both.”

“Yea.” Skyla chirped absently “And people always chasing you to try and arr-” She froze, biting back a squeak when she felt a sudden sharp jab from Swift’s elbow into her shoulder.”Errr rest….”

“Huh?” the Jolteon asked, obviously confused by her choice in words. She folded her ears back and cursed herself silently for the slip while her golden eyes darted around, seeking a possible escape route. Swift put a hand on her shoulder and shook his head like the jig was up. It was all over now.

“Like I said, tired and worn out. Is there an inn nearby that we could stay at? We’ll meet you at the Guildhall in the morning as promised.” Swift said. Zavion held his confused look a moment longer before shrugging and pointing down the main stone paved avenue behind them. 

“Follow that to the center, you’ll see a statue of Arceus there, turn onto the road facing his back and look for the Ivory Thorn Inn, best beds and drinks in the valley.”

 

“Thanks!” Skyla said quickly, she shot Swift a thankful look before turning toward the road and the two headed off.

Neither of them saw the Jolteon raise his paw to his badge to speak into it. He paused for a moment “Can someone check the posters that came in from Avios? I think we’ve got something brewing.”

-000-

With it still being early in the morning the city square was bustling with various pokemon going about their daily shopping. Skyla and Swift had slipped into the throng of customers and haggling merchants, many of which had smiles on their faces and genuine grins as they argued with their customers. It was all apart of their community, even though it was their livelihood, no true resident of Three Peaks didn’t enjoy bartering. The scents were as overwhelming as the noise. Freshly cooked meals wafted up from some of the booths.

It was too overwhelming for the thief. She was used to avoiding crowds this large, her golden eyes always searching for watchers or guards that may somehow recognize her. Swift helped some by keeping a hand firmly on her shoulder to remind her that he was there. Eventually, he spotted the statue and the trail behind it. It was less traveled the other roads, and much quieter.

“Oh man.” Skyla paused and breathed deeply, her anxieties settled for the moment. “Where’s this inn? The sooner we get inside the better.”

“Agreed,” Swift said, his black gaze kept looking around and eventually he spotted the Inn, it was one of the few multistory structures in the town. The closer they came Skyla could see just how well tended to it was. Where many of the other buildings were either tents or canvas structures, the Inn was made of wood. The freshly painted walls were dark emerald green with white thorns running along the length along twisting and curving brown vines.

Swift held the door open and Skyla stepped in, her paws thumping lightly against the hardwood floor. The inside was much darker than the outside exterior. Heavy curtains covered the multitude of windows. A few round tables sat in the middle of the floor with a larger one set on the corner next to the stone fireplace. With it still being early in the day there were few patrons up and about. A Kecleon stood behind the smooth stain covered bar counter, cleaning the glassware and plates with an almost obsessive vigor. Looking over her shoulder she waved at the two newcomers. Besides her, there was only one other Pokemon in the room. Sitting at the corner table was a Sentret, his long bushy tail curled under the table. He also turned at looked at the newcomers.

“Welcome to the Ivory Thorn! Can I get you two anything to eat or drink?” the bartender asked cheerfully while never missing a beat on dropping one cleaned glass and picking up the next.

“Later, you have any rooms available?” Swift asked while slipping his hand into his bag.

“Just one, so you two will have to share.” She said, which caused Skyla’s cheeks to redden, She was about to protest but Swift cut her off with a nod and the glimmering flash of a gold coin. “How much for two nights?”

“Two gold and ten silver coins.” The Color Swap Pokemon said, The moment the coins hit the countertop she opened mouth and her long tongue shot out and rapidly brought them up, dropping them in her hand with a wet thump. Skyla hoped Swift was in no hurry to get a refund now and she looked away and shuddered.

Dropping a brass key onto the counter, the Kecleon pointed up the nearby stairs “last door down the hall on the left.”

Swift gave a nod while expertly hiding his own disgust and grabbing the key with just his fingertips before tilting his head toward the stairs. “Let’s go get some rest then.” The duo headed up the stairs and once again failed to notice the Sentret in the corner raising something up to his mouth. It wasn’t his glass but a brown and green badge.

Once they reached the door Swift opened it once more for Skyla and when she stepped inside she understood the somewhat hefty price. The room was simple with a straw-stuffed bed in the corner, it would accommodate most pokemon who could even fit inside of the inn. There was a simple desk below the single window. Stepping closer she raised herself up, placing her paws against the desk and peering out. Their room faced some kind of back alley away from the hustle and bustle of the street. Best of all though was how well the walls muffled the noise of the outside world.

“You may have given us away, what were you thinking!?” Swift said once he closed the door. He turned and stared at the Umbreon, rubbing his forehead with his left hand. Skyla turned her attention away from the window and grimaced.

“Sorry, I got carried away, I was trying to help convince him.” She said, she could feel the embarrassment rising but Swift raised a hand to halt her from saying more. He sighed in frustration, it was the first slip she had seen since being in his company and it had her worried. “What are we going to do?”

“I don’t know, that Jolteon may not have caught your slip up but we don’t want to risk it. I need to get these reports back to Lyn. So get some sleep while you can because I have a feeling we’re not going to get another chance for a while.”

“Alright and Swift…” Skyla said she paused to shallow “I’m sorry, I won’t let it happen again.”

“I know, you just need more practice and training, once you learn the kinds of things you should and shouldn’t say I’m sure you’ll do fine.”

The Umbreon nodded before looking back out the window. “Would it be wise to roam around a bit?”

“ Guessing you're not that tired?” She nodded and he nodded “You could count this as a form of early training then. Patience, we gave the impression of traveling hard and needing to rest. If they are going to do anything then they will probably wait until later on when they think we’re sound asleep so they can catch us off guard.”

Skyla tilted her head slightly, her ears flicking and she nodded, the logic seemed sound. If she was going to ambush someone she thought she could catch off guard, then it was that line of thinking she’d be using. “Alright, but can we talk when you get back? About the Wardens?”

Swift stood beside the door and he gave her a single nod before slipping out and closing the door behind him. Skyla took advantage of the moment of silence to mull over the events so far. She curled up on the straw bed and closed her eyes before trying to figure out how she could have avoided the whole situation even happening.

The hours dragged by and she had come to the same conclusion time after time. There wasn’t anything that she could have done differently. Completely absorbed in her thoughts, Skyla never heard the door open or saw the figure step into the room. A voice spoke, one that was somewhat familiar to her now. That wasn’t what made her freeze, it was the words he said that broke her out of her thoughts.

“Skyla Veil, You’re under arrest for multiple accounts of theft through Avios, Pyros, and Grassilla,” The Jolteon said while blocking her only escape route out the door.


	7. Arrested

Chapter 7: The Three Peaks Guild

None of it felt real, the shiny Umbreon seemed to be watching the scene before her from outside of her own body. The Jolteon took a step forward toward her, his thick yellow bristled fur crackled with static. A Mienfoo stepped behind him, smaller than them both, but she carried a hard glare in her eyes. 

“We can do this peacefully or we can take you down,” Zavion said, he didn’t carry the same friendly expression or warm smile that he had worn at the gate. Looking directly into his face Skyla saw nothing none of his easy going nature. Behind his coal black eyes, nothing lingered but the hardened resolve to get an assignment done. She didn't move, instead, she looked down at the hardwood floor of the room and folded her ears down against her head.

It had all been too good to last, she had known her past would catch up with her eventually but she had foolishly hoped that it would have happened after she had gotten to Kios and into the ranks of the Wardens. She could have made something of herself than, but now it’d never happen. The extensive list of thefts held against her would make her lucky to ever even get to breath fresh air again, and that was only if she lived to return to Grassillia for the crimes she had committed years ago in her hometown on the northern coast. She didn’t know how the Aviosian justice system worked, but the rumors said that it was as harsh as the mountainous and barren landscape itself.

“Let her try her luck, the outlaws we’ve had to fight lately have been subpar,” The Mienfoo muttered while crossing her arms and glaring at the Dark-Type, daring her to make a sudden move. She was itching for a reason to get into a fight, and a well-known flight risk thief was as good of an outlet as any other.

“No, Aera, you know the orders,” Zavion said without taking his eyes off of Skyla. “Things will go best if you come quietly.”

“Where would we be going?” Skyla asked, her muscles bunched up under her fur as she looked around quickly while trying to bide her time.

“To the Guildhall where you’ll stay until an Aviosian team arrives to escort you back to their country to answer for this latest theft of yours, after that the Exploration confederation will determine how you serve for the crimes in the other countries.”

“But…..” Skyla wanted to tell them about the Wardens, maybe they’d let her go then, but she knew that was only delusional thinking. “Fine.” She said slouching her shoulders in defeat.

“You’ve got bounties and it’s our duty to turn you in,” Zavion explained with a shake of his head. Skyla could have sworn that he was reluctant to do this, but he had to. There might be a chance, she looked at the window off to the side, just behind the Mienfoo. If she could just get to it then she could get through it and….and then what? Run from the entire Guild into the mountains? Where would she go or even do?

She was a thief and a sneak at heart, a direct head-on confrontation was not something she was comfortable doing, it wasn’t smart for someone her size too. Fighting anyone would only slow down her attempts to escape and made capture far more likely. She hadn’t made it years as a thief by being foolish, impulsive, but not foolish.

“We can still do this the second way,” Aera said, the Mienfoo cracked her knuckles and rolled her shoulders, she stepped to the side, out of the doorway, taunting Skyla to try and dash out of it.

Skyla sighed in defeat and stepped forward slowly, The bag secured to her side weighed heavily against her, only reminding her of everything that she had done. “That won’t be necessary, I’ll come quietly,” She said while swallowing. Looking up, Zavion looked relieved and Aera looked disappointed. The Mienfoo idly rubbed her hands together, her small translucent claws catching the dim light of the lantern hanging from the wall.

“Smart choice,” The Jolteon said, there was relief in his voice, confirming her suspicion that he was reluctant to fight her. He would if he had to, but the Jolteon preferred to handle these situations peacefully. The pit inside of her stomach grew, she had known what would happen if she had been caught, the past week had been nice. No one had known who she was or what her past held. To everyone else, she had just been a passing traveler, or a Warden, even if in deceit, she had felt respectable. The truth came out though. She was only a thief and nothing more.

“Come along then, Skyla,” Zavion said before turning toward the door, he stepped out of it and before she could move a hand shoved her forward, causing her to stumble across the threshold. She hit the wall opposite the door with a soft thump and she grunted before looking over her shoulder. Aera was glaring at her with her hand held out. 

“Move,” She growled and Skyla bit back her complaint and started off after Zavion. The tavern had filled up with more patrons coming in to eat their late breakfasts and early lunches. The Kecleon was busy scurrying back and forth between the tables and the bar but she paused when she saw the trio coming down the stairs. There was a look of confusion on her face, but it didn’t take her long to piece things together. Zavion was one of her regulars and though she didn’t know the Mienfoo’s name, she was seen frequently enough at the hall to know that she was an explorer as well. Then her eyes fell onto Skyla, the ridges of her eyebrows rose slowly in disdain and she shook her head. “No refunds.”

Skyla swallowed as numerous pairs of eyes turned and looked at them, She could hear people whispering among themselves. Different words floated on the air, from thief to killer and even assassin. A low groan escaped the Dark-Type, she knew enough about rumors to know that by the time they actually got to the city’s Guildhall that the story would be something along the lines of her being dragged out kicking and screaming, or maybe it took an entire unit to catch her. Either way, it was exactly what she hadn’t wanted to happen. She missed the fleeting morning where she had just been another anonymous traveler.

Zavion bumped the door open with his head before stepping out and looking over his shoulder. Skyla was about to follow but she was shoved through the door once again. She stumbled over the threshold awkwardly, her tail and limbs flailing frantically to keep balanced. A burst of loud laughter echoed from inside of the bar, causing Skyla’s cheeks to flush red with embarrassment. She threw an accusing look at the Mienfoo who stood in the doorframe now, her hand still raised. Skyla fumed silently, taking a deep breath to try and keep herself from doing something foolish.

“Guess we won’t have to worry about you trying to escape if you’re that clumsy,” Aera said with a malicious grin, she looked to Zavion while closing the door behind her. “Can you believe she’s accumulated over six th-”

“You did that on purpose,” Skyla blurted out angrily She hadn’t wanted to say anything because it’d only be throwing fuel on the fire but she couldn’t stop herself this time. She took a step toward the Mienfoo but her path was blocked by Zavion calmy stepping between them. 

“Don’t you accuse me of anything lowlife,” Aera growled, she raised her hand once more, white energy pooled inside of it. She held up her Exploration badge with her other hand. “You see this badge thief? This gives me all the authority I need to leave you in a bloody mess just because I feel like it.” 

A small silence built up between the three until the Mienfoo took another step forward. “Get out of the way Zavion, let me knock her crooked little smirk off her face,” 

Zavion said nothing, he had kept an absolute poker face up until that moment. His intentions weren’t clear but Skyla noticed the slight crease in his brows. Sparks collected along the jagged edges of his yellow fur.

“Step down Aera, you know this is not how we handle things,” He said, his tone was dangerously low, Aera caught it as well and she lowered her hand and the Force Palm dissolved. Skyla resisted the temptation to stick her tongue from behind the Jolteon’s back, but she knew he was only defending her because his teammate had overstepped her boundaries. He took a step toward the defiant pokemon, his tone holding a sharp edge “We will not disrespect criminals who comply with orders, understand? If you don’t, I’ll make sure you do: with a demotion and berry recovery jobs for the next year.”

“Fine,” Aera spat after a few seconds, she never took her glare off of the Umbreon and Skyla swallowed, thankful for Zavion’s devotion to duty. If it had just been the two of them, then she wasn’t sure what she would have done other then fight. Fighting an exploration member was the last thing she wanted at the moment.

“Good,” Zavion said with a smile, his chipper side returning now that things were cleared up. He turned his attention back to Skyla and gestured toward the cobblestone pathway. “Now, how about we get to the guild before too many more pokemon stir? I’d rather cause as little of a scene as possible.”

Skyla looked toward the rocky pathway, it leads through the middle of the town, right past all of the booths and market stalls. Listening intently and she could pick up the haggling voices of multiple residences as they bartered with the various shopkeepers. “I’m guessing there are no backways we could go?”

Aera snorted in disbelief and muttered, “So your Dewott friend could ambush us?”

The words caught Skyla off guard, she froze up and looked around surreptitiously for the blue otter’s face. He had been gone since the morning and hadn’t even entered her thoughts until he was mentioned. Where was he? He wouldn’t have just left her here after everything he had said, would he?

“The others will find him and bring him to the hall so that we can clear up if he’s really a Warden or not,” Zavion said, cutting in and stopping Aera’s follow up remark before she could even make it. Skyla looked at him in disbelief, they didn’t even believe that he was who he said he was? Considering their circumstances, she could understand it, and that meant that he could be facing issues of his own.

-000-

 

The Dewott was propped up against the broken and crumbling wall of one of the town’s older and few stone storehouses. It stood near the town square, decrepit and fallen into ruin after years of disuse. The tall structure cast dark shadows into the alleyway, even with the sun hovering almost vertically above the town. He had been crouched in the shadows for nearly ten minutes. The same exploration team that had had already passed by three times in their slow-growing frantic search for him rushed by once more.

It had all started shortly after he had left the inn in order to find the post office and mail off the reports. A chance look over his shoulder had revealed a rather determined Turtwig to be walking along the same route as him. A few sharp turns down side streets and he was still there. The Dewott was smiling though, his casual looks over his shoulder showed the Grass-Type to freeze up or try and clumsy hide behind a nearby booth or box, even ducking into a doorway once. 

It would have been amusing if the situation wasn’t serious. If someone was following him, then it meant that they were onto Skyla, much sooner than he had anticipated. He had ducked down into the alley after losing his stalker in the thick throng of shoppers mere blocks away. If his memory was correct than the guild should be in the southern portion of the town, along with the most well-defended wall. He looked out and he could make out a few two-story structures. The closet was the inn in the center of the town. The next was far more decorative and oriental, vaguely resembling a large tree. 

It was the town hall, and that meant that the third building, the one that rested furthest away had to be the guild hall. the Dewott could make out the vague shape but any fine details were lost on the brown and green blur. Creeping through the back alleys to get there was going to take far too long. The Turtwig that had been trailing him happened to pass by the entrance once more. This time his partner was with him, a young Fennekin.

“How can we call ourselves explorers and hunt outlaws if we lost someone this easily in our own town?” The Fennekin said in exasperation, her voice grew in high in pitch as she glared at her teammate. “We had one job! Kurt, one job! Ava’s gonna have us gathering berries until we reach Bronze rank because of this,”

Swift watched on in silence as Kurt, the Turtwig shook his head in slow agreement with his panicked teammate. “Shera, I know, ” He said before looking around one last time with his back to their quarry. The Dewott could hear the hopefulness in the Grass-Type’s voice as he added “You think they’ll believe he was a Warden though? No one’s been able to find him, I think only they’d be capable of such a feat.”

“Zavion won’t accept that excuse, you know what he says,” Shera said, both of them paused for a moment before they repeated what sounded like an old manta in near perfect unison. 

“Always confirm it yourself,”

Finally, he had enough of their banter, the team would be the quickest way to get to the guild and Swift crept up behind them before speaking. “Smoking Twig I take it?” he said, with a conversational tone. Unfortunately, someone appearing behind you and knowing your team’s name freaked out most people. The squeal of surprise emitted by the Fennekin proved this as the duo jumped up and turned around to face the very pokemon they had failed to find.

Kurt was the first to recover his senses, he had done a bit better then Shera to hide his terror. Both of them took a step back from Swift, fearfully eying the paw that was digging through his bag. He had a look of impatience, something neither of them would have expected from what should have been their prey. There was a dull metallic gleam when Swift drew his hand from the bag and the Turtwig yelled a warning before he dropped to the ground. “Spike!”

After a few seconds, the sharp stabbing pain he had expected to feel ripping him apart never came. Opening his eyes he was met his teammate’s worried expression and the otter’s annoyed scowl. He was holding up a silver feather badge, not a deadly spike. “That’s the Warden Symbol.” The Turtwig said before looking toward the ground in embarrassment. 

“Yes, it is, wasn’t that what you two were looking for?” Swift asked unamused.

“Yes…..you,” the Fennekin said hesitantly before nudging her partner. “We were supposed to find you and bring you to guild sir, Guildmaster Ava wants to question you about the fire.”

“Even when my partner and I agreed to meet there in the morning after some rest? At Zavion’s request?” Swift said before crossing his arms. 

“Well um...She ...you know, she wanted to do it now,” Kurt swallowed, tossing a look at Shera, his discomfort growing.

Swift rubbed his forehead and sighed, he knew that they should have just skipped Three Peaks and headed on to the next town, it would have saved them so much trouble. “She doesn't believe we’re Wardens,” He said, unable to decide if he was more annoyed that he had found a Guild leader who actually followed the rules and took her job seriously, or that it just had to be at the best time to inconvenience him further.

The two young pokemon nodded their heads vigorously, grateful to see that the Dewott hadn’t taken the news the wrong way. They had both been scared that he was like any of the rumored nobles or other officials of the Crown. Full of himself and far too aware of his own importance, that he would have taken offense at the news. Swift’s chuckle caused them to shoot each other a worried glance.

“Well then, let’s get to the guild then,” Swift said while gesturing toward the south. “I’d like to get these questions out of the way so I can get back to my own business.” He watched the two look at each other in disbelief. “Something wrong?”

“Oh um, no sir!” The Fennekin said quickly while grinning, however bizarrely this was turning out to be, they had managed to find him and they could prove to the guild that they were useful after all. “it’s just that we hadn’t actually expected to get this far.”

“Yea, it was our first real assignment besides guard duty,” Kurt said with a proud smile on his face. Swift nodded once more before gesturing down the road.

“Well how about we get back then? If we take much longer I might get bored and just slip off again,” Swift said, causing the Turtwig to tense up. He really believed that the Dewott would, and he would have, had time not been such an issue “I would like to get this resolved before sunset.”

“Alright,” Shera said, she fumbled for the badge woven into the bandana she wore, once she felt the familiar lump she pressed it with a paw. “Er Guildmaster? Zavion?” There was a brief moment of pause before Swift could hear the slightly distorted voice of the Jolteon.

“Yes?” 

“We found the Dewott sir, want us to bring him back to the guild?” The Fennekin asked, there was another moment of silence before Zavion responded over the Badge Network.

“What’s your location? I want to get another team out there before you confront the suspect.”

“Um...right next to him…” Kurt said with a grimace. The line was silent except for a barely audible thump on Zavion’s end. Swift raised an eyebrow, it sounded oddly familiar with his reports to his own commander. Like the sound of someone slapping their paw against their forehead, or their head against a nearby wall or desk in exasperation.

Zavion eventually responded, his tone was carefully guarded, a hint of his annoyance still showed. “Exactly how close is he?”

“Close enough to hear you,” Swift said before he rolled his eyes and snatching the Fennekin by the neck, holding her badge and causing her to squeak in surprise “We’re coming to the guild hall now and I’ll explain everything there, ok?”

“It doesn't seem like there’s much choice since two of my guild members decided to ignore protocol,” Zavion said. The two pokemon could sense his displeasure and both of their mouths opened but Swift held up a paw to silence them.

“They didn’t do too badly,” he said in their defense. “A little over eager and lacking subtlety but beyond that, if they were sent to follow someone with average skills, they would have done well.” His compliment caught the duo off guard and they stared in disbelief. The Warden could see how surreal things had become for the two when Zavion voiced his agreement.

“They are decent, just inexperienced,” Zavion paused, he found it strange himself to be carrying on this kind of conversation with someone he was supposed to be hunting. “Just um...get here quickly ok? We’ve already got Skyla in a room, once you get here we’ll talk with Ava and figure this out.”

“If anyone hurts her they’ll be dealing with me, understand?” Swift said with just a hint of anger etched into his words. 

“She’s been treated with respect for surrendering peacefully,” Zavion responded with a guarded tone. Swift gave a small nearly invisible nod before he let go of the firefox’s neck. 

“Sorry about that,” He said while adjusting her scarf for her. Once he was finished he looked between the two and gestured off toward the Guildhall. “Want to lead the way?”

“Yeh,” Shera said quickly once the awkward silence passed. “Yea, let’s get back.” She turned toward the path and the trio started off. Pokemon were out and about now. Merchants argued with their customers, Young children of various species yelled and squealed in delight, running between the feet of their parents. The sharp bark of an annoyed mother popped up on occasion, silencing the squeal for roughly five seconds before the children started up once more.

Swift hated the close quarters and loud chatter, the towns always felt far too confining for his liking. In the forests, he could tell what nearly any noise was, or at least if it was hostile or not. In here though, he couldn't. A fallen piece of stone could be an assassin creeping along the rooftops. The shadow of a passing flying-type could be a stalking pair of eyes or a hostile following him. Usually, he managed to keep this discomfort buried, but the stress of getting Skyla out of this situation and back to Kios weighed heavily on his mind. Along with the slavers, he knew he couldn’t leave that problem up to the guilds to solve, it put Grassillian citizens at risk and that alone made it a Warden issue.

-000-

Skyla’s golden eyes flicked to the corner of every alley and side road that she and her escorts passed by. Two thoughts crossed her mind every time. Was Swift just around the corner watching her? Or was it worth risking an escape attempt? She wasn’t sure about the first thought. The Dewott seemed fairly capable of taking care of himself and getting out of this type of situation. Inwardly she already knew the answer to the second question.

It wasn’t worth trying to escape or slip away from the clutches of the guilds this time. Now she had a chance to try and right all of her wrongs. She had hoped to achieve it by joining the Wardens, but now she’d be paying off her bounties with time. The total collection of bounties amounted to a high amount, the exact numbers she had lost track of, but she knew it’d be enough to put her out of society for a long time. She swallowed, thinking about Avios and what they might do to her. She had heard a loss of a limb was a common and popular form of punishment for theft in the county and her paws ached just thinking about it.

Stealing that flute had to have been the most foolish thing she had ever done. No matter what did happen now, she knew that it would be the last time she swiped something on an impulse. Unfortunately, she wouldn’t get a chance to practice the new found wisdom. During their walk, she had lost track of where they were until a large shadow was cast over the trio and she looked up to see the large structure that had caused it.

The Three Peaks Exploration Guild was a broad two-story structure made up of stone and wood, The ground level was mostly brown and green stones anchored into the earth. The upper floor had a window almost every five or six feet, stretched out over two hundred feet In the dead center of the top floor Skyla could see twisted metal railing that vaguely resembled twisting vines running along a fifty-foot section of the floor. It reminded her of a balcony or observation deck.

“Here we are, let's get you inside and settled down,” Zavion said while coming up onto Skyla’s left side. She would have laughed at how casual he made it sound had she not been stressed out. Aera headed toward the door, she opened the broad wooden circular door for the two quadrupedal pokemon before she slipped off inside. Skyla breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the Mienfoo’s back, grateful to be out of her ill-tempered company.

“Alright.” She murmured under her breath before she moved to follow the Jolteon as he slipped inside of the building. Stepping inside was like entering another world for the Umbreon. The Guildhall was busy and she could hear voices that seemed to be coming from above her, beside her, before and even behind her. They stood inside of a reception area. The room was small and utilitarian in design and function. A large wooden desk stood opposite the door, piled high with stacks of papers. Off to her side rested four high backed chairs under the window. The floor was hardwood, freshly polished, a large blue and white woven rectangular rug sat under the desk to keep it from scratching the floor.

Zavion had paused to let her take in the scene before he nudged her with his nose. Skyla blinked and looked at the Jolteon before he stepped up to the counter. She followed him quietly, a couple of voices paused at the door. It was an Oddish and Meowth. The two watched Skyla curiously, their eyes lingered on her glowing blue rings for a moment before they saw Zavion and the Oddish spoke. 

“Sir! The Riolu’s wounds are being tended to by Ellery as you requested, it looks like he’ll recover in another day or two.”

“Good, and his companions?” Zavion asked while stepping behind the desk for a moment. Skyla could hear papers rustling. He popped back up after a moment with an empty mouth. “Anyone see where Kate put the Arrest forms?”

“They're fine, only exhausted and no sir, who’s been arrested?” The Meowth asked she paused when it dawned on her that it had to be the Umbreon, “She’s an outlaw? Looks more like the three we fished out of the fire.” She said, gesturing toward Skyla’s soot-covered fur. Skyla groaned inwardly while closing her eyes.

“Yes, she is, and we’ll be getting that cleaned up before her meeting with the Guildmaster.” Zavion said, he took another peek under the desk before giving up and turning his attention onto the two explorers “Can you two please find Kate and ask her for one? I need to fill it out as soon as possible.”

“Yes sir!” the two chimed in unison before dashing off, clearly eager to get it done as quickly as they could. Skyla couldn’t help but let a small smile show at their enthusiasm. “People around here really do like you, don’t they?”

“It comes with being second in command here, no one wants to end up recovering berries dropped by town members for months if they mess up,” Zavion said with a chuckle. “Now come on, I’ve got to get you into a room while I arrange a meeting with Guildmaster Ava, I’ll see about getting you a bowl of water so you can try and clean up as well.”

“Thanks, but what do I need to meet her for? Aren't you just going to ship me off to Avios?” Skyla asked, trying to figure it out, an outlaw meeting with a guild master wasn’t unheard of, but it was abnormal and there had to be more to it.

“Some complications may have arisen,” Zavion explained before pointing off toward the door that the Oddish and Meowth had first come from, “The Sandshrew said he was sent with an Aviosian team, he said your Dewott friend pointed out that they neglected to obtain an approved cross-border warrant, if they really did then this is going to turn into a bureaucratic nightmare between the King and the Exploration confederation.” 

Skyla raised an eyebrow, she didn’t dare dwell on the possibility but she had to know “By a nightmare you mean what exactly?”

Zavion gave her a smile before he shook his head slowly, “The kind that can end in you walking free and your bounties being paid off if you join the Wardens because of that guild’s disregard for protocol, it’ll give the guilds weeks worth of paperwork to sort through, plenty of time to get to Kios.”

Skyla’s heart leaped into her throat at the news, “How do you know that'll happen?”

“Walk and talk,” Zavion said, he turned and headed through a nearby door. Skyla walked after him, the hallway was as simple as the reception room with a few tapestries lining the walls between the windows, it carried the same brown and green paint that adorned the outside as well. The Jolteon lead her up a flight of stairs and into another hallway, this one had large thick wooden doors. Each one was reinforced with bands of metal as well. It reminded Skyla of the gates at the entrance to the town. Zavion paused before one such door and using his teeth he tugged on the rope handle, pushing it inward he gestured for Skyla to step inside.

Inside it was surprisingly comfortable for what was called a cell. The room was narrow and compact, maybe five feet by seven feet. There was a pile of clean straw in the corner under a window that was covered with heavy wooden rods that acted as bars. Besides the bed, there was nothing in the room that could be called furniture. There was a small bucket beside the hay, filled with fresh drinking water.

“To answer your questions though, I worked as a city guard in Kios, Wardens are far more common there and the guard tended to get along well with them. It’s in their nature to pluck problem pokemon with potential off the street, especially if it means giving the local guild a headache as well.” he said, never losing his smile as he added, “Now, get comfortable, I’m sure the Dewott is on his way here to try and exploit that loophole if it’s true, I need to brief Ava before he gets here.”

Skyla stared at him in disbelief, she gave a silent nod and the door was closed. Skyla noticed that there was no way to open the door from inside, there was no lock or doorknob. Suddenly Skyla’s legs shook underneath her, threatening to give out. Now that she was alone she could finally take a moment to think and process everything. She felt sick to her stomach with fear and guilt. Her fate so far looked like it’d be a coin toss between freedom and punishment. She turned toward the bed and the window. She could see the sun off in the distance and she stepped closer, placing her forepaws on the edge of the window. If she got out of this she would make up for the things she had done by joining the Wardens. She closed her eyes when she made the vow. 

There was a heavy but muffled thump off in the distance. Skyla opened her golden eyes in confusion and she peered through the window. Off to the north, she could see something rising on the air. It was a pokemon, orange scales gleamed in the sunlight and suddenly there was a loud boom and a flash of light at the northern gate. There were muffled screams and Skyla stumbled back from the window, nearly tripping over her bag.

Confusion ran amuck as she realized that the town was under attack and she was trapped in this room. She looked toward the door, she could see the shadows of figures rushing past. She raced to it and shouted for someone to open the door. No one did and she looked around frantically. Something caught her attention at the window, her blood ran cold when she realized that she locked eyes with the Charizard hovering on the other side.


End file.
